ostium

American  

[os-tee-uhm] / ˈɒs ti əm /

noun

plural

ostia

1. Anatomy, Zoology. a small opening or orifice, as at the end of the oviduct.

2. Zoology. one of the tiny holes in the body of a sponge.

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ostium British  

/ ˈɒstɪəm /

noun

1. any of the pores in sponges through which water enters the body

2. any of the openings in the heart of an arthropod through which blood enters

3. any similar opening

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Etymology

Origin of ostium

First recorded in 1655–65, ostium is from the Latin word ōstium entrance, river mouth

Example Sentences

Those of the 11th century were certainly so, "Primi ad ostium Baltici Sinus in australi ripa versus nos Dani, quos Juthas appellant, usque ad Sliam lacum habitant."

From A Handbook of the English Language by Latham, R. G. (Robert Gordon)

Octobris, obiit Galfridus de Mandeuil, comes Essexiæ, fundator primus hujus monasterii de Walden, cujus corpus jacet Londoniis humatum, apud Temple-bar in porticu ante ostium ecclesiæ occidentale.

From The History of the Knights Templars, the Temple Church, and the Temple by Addison, Charles G.

Double doors admitted the visitor to the entrance-hall or ostium.

From The Story of Rome from the Earliest Times to the End of the Republic by Gilman, Arthur

When the inflammation is adjacent to the ostium it leads to the matting together of the tubal fimbriae and glues them to an adjacent organ.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 12, Slice 7 "Gyantse" to "Hallel" by Various

Wherever the fertilized ovum remains and implants its villi the tube becomes turgid and swollen, and the abdominal ostium gradually closes.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 12, Slice 7 "Gyantse" to "Hallel" by Various