metaphysis

M3E1T1A1P3H4Y4S1I1S1
/məˈtæfɪsɪs/

noun

The part of a long bone that grows during development.

OriginAncient Greek μετά →
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Meanings

nounmetaphysis (countable and uncountable, plural metaphyses)

plural metaphyses

  1. countableanatomyThe part of a long bone that grows during development.

    In this ulna, the margins of the lytic lesion in the proximal metaphysis are fully corticated.

    2023, Simon Mays, “The Macroscopic Study of Human Skeletal Paleopathology” (chapter 2), in The Routledge Handbook of Paleopathology, Routledge, →DOI, →ISBN, page 28
  2. countableuncountableChange of form; transformation.

Origin

  1. Ancient Greekφύσις“growth”
  2. Ancient Greekμετά“after”
  3. Englishmetaphysis

From Ancient Greek μετά (metá, “after”) + Ancient Greek φύσις (phúsis, “growth”), equivalent to meta- + -physis.

More words from Ancient Greek

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Arabic كُرْدُوس
  • كُرْدُوس (kurdūs)part of long bone
Czech metafýza, mezirost
  • metafýzapart of long bone
  • mezirostpart of long bone
Finnish metafyysi, muodonmuutos
  • metafyysipart of long bone
  • muodonmuutoschange of form
Cite this entry
APA

metaphysis. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/metaphysis

MLA

“metaphysis.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/metaphysis. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “metaphysis,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/metaphysis.

Source: metaphysis on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.