isthmus

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a narrow strip of land connecting two larger land areas and bordered by water on both sides

   The Panama Canal crosses the isthmus between North and South America.

2. 2
   noun

   a narrow band or passage connecting two larger anatomical structures

   A thin isthmus of thyroid tissue joins the gland's two lobes.

Borrowed through Latin isthmus from Greek isthmos, 'neck or narrow passage.' The geographic sense compares a constricted strip of land to a neck joining larger bodies; anatomy later applied the same image to narrow tissue connecting larger parts.

Topics

External links

• Cambridge Dictionary
• Wiktionary
• Google Images