Meanings
stapes1
plural stapedes
- anatomyA small stirrup-shaped innermost ossicle of the middle ear of mammals, transmitting vibrations from the incus to the inner ear.
1 more example
The tympanic cavity is spanned by the three smallest bones in the body: the auditory ossicles[…] These bones, named for their shape, are the malleus (malʹe-us; "hammer"); the incus (ingʹkus; "anvil"); and the stapes (staʹpēz; "stirrup"). The "handle" of the malleus is secured to the eardrum, and the base of the stapes fits into the oval window.
2010, Elaine Nicpon Marieb, Katja Hoehn, Human Anatomy & Physiology, 8th edition, page 576Synonyms: stirrup
stapes2
- pluralplural of stape
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA small stirrup-shaped innermost ossicle of the middle ear of mammals, transmitting vibrations from the incus to the inner ear.
More synonyms by meaning
nounthe stirrup-shaped ossicle that transmits sound from the incus to the cochlea
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Medieval Latinstapēs“stirrup”
- Englishstapes
Borrowed from Medieval Latin stapēs (“stirrup”). Doublet of step.
More words from Medieval Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Afrikaans stiebeuel, stapes
- stiebeuelTranslations
- stapesTranslations
Catalan estrep
- estrepTranslations
Chinese Mandarin 鐙骨 /镫骨
- 鐙骨 /镫骨 (dènggǔ)Translations
Czech třmínek
- třmínekTranslations
Estonian jalus
- jalusTranslations
Finnish jalustin
- jalustinTranslations
French étrier
- étrierTranslations
German Steigbügel
- SteigbügelTranslations
Greek αναβολέας
- αναβολέας (anavoléas)Translations
Hungarian kengyel
- kengyelTranslations
Italian staffa
- staffaTranslations
Japanese 鐙骨
- 鐙骨 (abumikotsu)Translations
Korean 등자뼈
- 등자뼈 (deungjappyeo)Translations
Norwegian stigbøyle
- stigbøyleTranslations
Polish strzemiączko
- strzemiączkoTranslations
Portuguese estribo, estapédio
- estriboTranslations
- estapédioTranslations
Romanian scăriță
- scărițăTranslations
Russian стре́мя
- стре́мя (strémja)Translations
Spanish estribo, estapedio
- estriboTranslations
- estapedioTranslations
Swedish stigbygel
- stigbygelTranslations
Thai กระดูกโกลน
- กระดูกโกลน (grà-dùuk-gloon)Translations
Turkish üzengi
- üzengiTranslations
Vietnamese xương bàn đạp
- xương bàn đạpTranslations
Yiddish בייגל
- בייגל (beygl)Translations
Cite this entry
stapes. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/stapes
“stapes.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/stapes. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “stapes,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/stapes.
Source: stapes on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.