Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun A narrow strip of land connecting two larger masses of land.
- noun A narrow strip of tissue joining two larger organs or parts of an organ.
- noun A narrow passage connecting two larger cavities.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun A narrow strip of land bordered by water and connecting two larger bodies of land, as two continents, a continent and a peninsula, or two parts of an island.
- noun In botany and zoology, some connecting part or organ, especially when narrow or joining parts larger than itself.
- noun The contracted passage from the cavity of the mouth into that of the pharynx.
- noun In fishes, the lower part of the septum between the opposing gill-openings. It is supported and stiffened by the urohyal.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun (Geog.) A neck or narrow slip of land by which two continents are connected, or by which a peninsula is united to the mainland
- noun (Anat.) See
Fauces .
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun A narrow
strip of land,bordered on both sides bywater , and connecting two largerlandmasses . - noun anatomy Any
such narrow part connectingtwo largerstructures .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun a cord-like tissue connecting two larger parts of an anatomical structure
- noun a relatively narrow strip of land (with water on both sides) connecting two larger land areas
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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On the other side of the isthmus is a sandy beach facing the open ocean.
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On the other side of the isthmus is a sandy beach facing the open ocean.
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The isthmus is noted for its nearly constant wind generated by the fact that it is between two seas, the Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico and there is a gap here in the high sierra so the winds blow through that gap to the extent they can actually upend truck carraiges.
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I picked up the book, looked at the attractive cover, and thought, wow, 350 pages of history about the isthmus is more than I want to read.
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I picked up the book, looked at the attractive cover, and thought, wow, 350 pages of history about the isthmus is more than I want to read.
The Isthmus: Stories from Mexico's Past, 1495-1995 by Bruce Stores 2010
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This isthmus is filled with energy generating windmills taking advantage of the almost constant high velocity winds known to tip over giant trucks and it has everything to do with the ferocious winds created by a break in the mountain barriers between the Gulf of Mexico and the Pacific that occurs only on the isthmus as you will understand if you review your maps and are contemplative.
Magical Drive 2010
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The isthmus is noted for its nearly constant wind generated by the fact that it is between two seas, the Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico and there is a gap here in the high sierra so the winds blow through that gap to the extent they can actually upend truck carraiges.
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They had been established to buffer the central isthmus from the periodic shocks and invasions emanating from the Indian country to their east.
The Door of the Seas and Key to the Universe: Indian Politics and Imperial Rivalry in the Dari 2001
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The Central American isthmus is a region of great contrasts, but also of heartening unison.
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In post-conflict countries, such as those found in the Latin American isthmus, this is particularly true.
Noah Marwil: Effecting Change Starts With the Community Noah Marwil 2011
chained_bear commented on the word isthmus
In geography: a narrow portion of land, enclosed on each side by water, and connecting two larger bodies of land; a neck of land.
In anatomy, zoology, and botany: A narrow part or organ connecting two larger parts; esp. the narrow passage connecting the cavity of the mouth with that of the pharynx.
February 5, 2007
reesetee commented on the word isthmus
And for people with a lisp, an extremely difficult word to pronounce. ;-)
August 9, 2007
skipvia commented on the word isthmus
And from the Little Rascals, "isthmus be my lucky day."
October 11, 2007
ofravens commented on the word isthmus
Placed on this isthmus of a middle state,
A being darkly wise, and rudely great
from 'The Riddle of the World,' Alexander Pope
February 28, 2009