dentary

American  

[den-tuh-ree] / ˈdɛn tə ri /

noun

Zoology.

plural

dentaries

1. one of a pair of membrane bones that in lower vertebrates form the distal part of the lower jaws and in mammals comprise the mandible.

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Etymology

Origin of dentary

1820–30; < Latin dentārius of the teeth, equivalent to dent- (stem of dēns ) tooth + -ārius -ary

Example Sentences

In mammals, the dentary bone joins the skull at the squamosal bone, while in other vertebrates, the quadrate bone of the jaw joins with the articular bone of the skull.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015

The lower jaw of mammals consists of only one bone, the dentary.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015

The dentary extends approximately 17.6 mm. back from the symphysis, and its greatest width is probably 2.0 mm.

From A New Order of Fishlike Amphibia From the Pennsylvanian of Kansas by Eaton, Theodore H. (Theodore Hildreth)

Abrasion of the sides of the inner maxillary and outer dentary teeth indicates that tooth-to-tooth contact did occur.

From The Adductor Muscles of the Jaw In Some Primitive Reptiles by Fox, Richard C.

Type specimen.—Fragmentary left dentary, bearing five teeth, the most posterior of which is broken at the base, KU 11120.

From Two New Pelycosaurs from the Lower Permian of Oklahoma by Fox, Richard C.