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Larynx - Dictionary Definition and Overview |
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Larynx : (noun)
1: a cartilaginous structure at the top of the trachea;
contains elastic vocal cords that are the source of the
vocal tone in speech [syn: voice box]
Based on WordNet 2.0
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Larynx : \Lar"ynx\, n. [?L, from Gr. ?, ?.] (Anat.)
The expanded upper end of the windpipe or trachea, connected
with the hyoid bone or cartilage. It contains the vocal
cords, which produce the voice by their vibrations, when they
are stretched and a current of air passes between them. The
larynx is connected with the pharynx by an opening, the
glottis, which, in mammals, is protected by a lidlike
epiglottis.
Note: In the framework of the human larynx, the thyroid
cartilage, attached to the hyoid bone, makes the
protuberance on the front of the neck known as Adam's
apple, and is articulated below to the ringlike cricoid
cartilage. This is narrow in front and high behind,
where, within the thyroid, it is surmounted by the two
arytenoid cartilages, from which the vocal cords pass
forward to be attached together to the front of the
thyroid. See Syrinx.
Based on Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
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Larynx : Larynx: The larynx is the portion of the breathing, or respiratory, tract containing the vocal cords which produce vocal sound. It is located between the pharynx and the trachea. The larynx,
also called the voice box, is a 2-inch-long, tube-shaped organ in the neck. 
We use the larynx when we breathe, talk, or swallow. Its outer wall of cartilage forms the area of the front of the neck referred to as the "Adams apple."
The vocal cords, two bands of muscle, form a "V" inside the larynx.
Each time we inhale (breathe in), air goes into our nose or mouth, then through the larynx, down the trachea, and into our lungs. When we exhale (breathe out), the air goes the other way. When we
breathe, the vocal cords are relaxed, and air moves through the space between them without making any sound.
When we talk, the vocal cords tighten up and move closer together. Air from the lungs is forced between them and makes them vibrate, producing the sound of our voice. The tongue, lips, and teeth
form this sound into words.
The esophagus, a tube that carries food from the mouth to the stomach, is just behind the trachea and the larynx. The openings of the esophagus and the larynx are very close together in the throat.
When we swallow, a flap called the epiglottis moves down over the larynx to keep food out of the windpipe.
Based on Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
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