greenstick fracture

[ green-stik ]

noun

1. an incomplete fracture of a long bone, in which one side is broken and the other side is still intact.

greenstick fracture

/ ˈɡriːnˌstɪk /

noun

1. a fracture in children in which the bone is partly bent and splinters only on the convex side of the bend

Word History and Origins

Origin of greenstick fracture¹

First recorded in 1880–85; green + stick ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of greenstick fracture¹

C20: alluding to the similar way in which a green stick splinters

Example Sentences

But he also observed more compressive fractures, as well as so-called greenstick fractures, in which a bone cracks only on one side, much like what happens when a living tree branch breaks.

From New York Times

Even if Kappelman could prove that Lucy had greenstick fractures, he wouldn't be able to prove they occurred before death.

From Washington Post

She broke her right arm—a greenstick fracture.

From Literature

He could not or would not get his agile body close enough to the ground to risk a greenstick fracture of his wrist on the season-ending hit in Baltimore.

From New York Times

The reduction of a recent greenstick fracture consists in forcibly straightening the bend in the bone, and in some cases it is necessary to render the fracture complete before this can be accomplished.

From Project Gutenberg