ligament

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a strong band of fibrous tissue that connects bones or supports an organ in the body

   The scan showed a torn ligament in her right knee.

2. 2
   noun

   figurative: something that binds people or things together as a unifying link

   Shared history remained the strongest ligament between the two communities.

From Late Middle English ligament, from Latin ligamentum, 'bond or bandage,' from ligare, 'to bind.' The anatomical name preserves the literal idea of a binding band, while the older and figurative English sense applies the same image to any social or conceptual bond.

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