lumbar

Meanings

1. 1
   adj

   relating to the lower back between the ribs and the pelvis

   The spinal cord ends near the first or second lumbar vertebra in an adult.

2. 2
   noun

   a vertebra of the lower back, or the lumbar region as a whole

   The surgeon counted down from the last thoracic vertebra to identify the first lumbar.

Common collocations

• lumbar puncture Adjective + noun
• lumbar vertebrae Adjective + noun

From Latin lumbarius, 'of the loins,' from lumbus, 'loin,' plus the relational suffix -aris. Medical and anatomical English uses lumbar for the five vertebrae and surrounding region between the rib cage and pelvis.

Topics

External links

• Cambridge Dictionary
• Wiktionary
• Google Images