Phalanges
/fəˈlændʒiːz/noun
The bones in the fingers and toes, especially the finger bones.
Did you know?The anatomical term comes from Greek phalanx, a tightly packed battle formation, because the finger bones were imagined as orderly ranks lined up in formation.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
phálanx (plural phálanges)
“a log, beam, or a tightly packed battle formation”
Late Latin
Latin
phalanx, phalangis
“a phalanx; later used in learned anatomical contexts”
16th Century
English
phalanx / phalanges
“borrowed scholarly term for a body of bones arranged in rows”
Modern English
English
phalanges
“the bones of the fingers or toes”
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