torso

/ˈtɔrsoʊ/

/ˈtɔsəʊ/

Other forms: torsos; torsi

A torso is the trunk of a human body — minus arms, legs, and head. Anatomically, your torso's job is to protect your internal organs, like your heart, lungs, and kidney, which are all protected by your rib cage.

A statue of a torso in a museum, usually ancient Greek or Roman, is that of the trunk of a human body. These works of art, often carved from marble, are so old that they've frequently lost their arms and heads — but still, the sturdy torso remains. Originally torso only referred to the trunk of a statue, from the Greek root thyrsos, "stalk or stem of a plant." Then, around the 1860s, it began referring human trunks as well.

Definitions of torso

1. noun

   the body excluding the head and neck and limbs
   synonyms: body, trunk

   type of:

   body part

   any part of an organism such as an organ or extremity