thorax

/ˌθɔˈræks/

/ˈθɔræks/

Other forms: thoraxes; thoraces

A thorax is the middle section of a body. If you’re a human, the thorax is your chest, which includes the heart and lungs. If you’re a wasp, the thorax includes the wings and legs. Also, if you’re a wasp, go away.

If you feel pain in your thorax, it may be coming from sore chest muscles or a bruised rib, or it could be more serious, since your thorax includes your heart. Having a bad cough or difficulty breathing affects your thorax as well. Still, this anatomical term is most likely to be used by a doctor or a scientist such as an entomologist, a person who studies bugs. It's the same word, thorax, in both Latin and Greek, meaning "breastplate or chest."

Definitions of thorax

1. noun

   the middle region of the body of an arthropod between the head and the abdomen
   type of:

   body part

   any part of an organism such as an organ or extremity
2. noun

   the part of the human torso between the neck and the diaphragm or the corresponding part in other vertebrates
   synonyms: chest, pectus

   types:

   bust, female chest

   the chest of a woman

   male chest

   the chest of a man

   type of:

   body part

   any part of an organism such as an organ or extremity
3. noun

   part of an insect's body that bears the wings and legs
   types:

   prothorax

   the anterior part of an insect's thorax; bears the first pair of legs

   type of:

   body part

   any part of an organism such as an organ or extremity