Scaphoid
/ˈskæfɔɪd/noun
A boat-shaped bone in the wrist or foot, especially the carpal bone at the base of the thumb.
Did you know?Scaphoid comes from Greek skaphos, meaning a hollowed-out boat or skiff, plus -oid, so medical language preserved a shape-word that still makes your wrist sound like ancient shipbuilding.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
skaphos
“a boat, skiff, or hollowed-out vessel”
Ancient Greek
Greek
skaphoeidēs
“boat-shaped”
Late Latin
Latin
scaphoides
“boat-shaped”
17th–19th Century
English
scaphoid
“anatomical term for a boat-shaped bone”
Modern English
English
scaphoid
“the boat-shaped bone of the wrist or foot”