Definition of mandible

The word "mandible" is derived from the Latin word "mandibula," which means "jaw bone." The Latin word, in turn, comes from the verb "mado," which meant "to chew" or "to munch." In ancient times, it was observed that animals that could chew their food had a pair of elongated, bony structures that protruded from their skulls. These structures helped them to grasp and tear their food, much like the jaws of a mandible. As a result, the Latin word "mandibula" came to be used as a medical term to describe these structures, which were identified as the bones that comprise the lower jawbone in vertebrates. In English, the word "mandible" is derived from the Latin "mandibula" via the French "mandibule," which was introduced during the Middle Ages when French was the language of the ruling elite. Today, the word "mandible" is commonly used in medical and dental terminology to refer to the lower jawbone, which is made up of a pair of curved bones that extend from the temporal bone at the side of the skull to the bottom of the chin.