pharyngeal jaws

noun

A secondary set of toothed bones or cartilage located deep within a fish's pharynx (or throat), behind the primary oral jaws; this second set of jaws are distinct from the main mouth jaws and are typically used to process food (like crushing, grinding, or tearing) and transport it to the esophagus, after the primary jaws have captured the prey.

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Meanings

nounpharyngeal jaws pl (plural only)
  1. pluralplural onlyanatomyA secondary set of toothed bones or cartilage located deep within a fish's pharynx (or throat), behind the primary oral jaws; this second set of jaws are distinct from the main mouth jaws and are typically used to process food (like crushing, grinding, or tearing) and transport it to the esophagus, after the primary jaws have captured the prey.
    1 more example

    In more advanced actinopterygians, the pharyngeal jaws take on the main role in processing food in addition to transport. Breaking down food ... is facilitated by a variety of changes that enable the pharyngeal jaws to engage more effectively. Teeth are concentrated on the tooth pads of the pharyngeal jaws.

    2016, Barry Berkovitz, Peter Shellis, chapter 4, in The Teeth of Non-Mammalian Vertebrates, page 49

Origin

From pharyngeal + jaw.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

pharyngeal jaws. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pharyngeal%20jaws

MLA

“pharyngeal jaws.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pharyngeal%20jaws. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “pharyngeal jaws,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pharyngeal%20jaws.

Source: pharyngeal jaws on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.