33 2 GLOSSARY 



Os-mo'sis (Greek osmos, a pushing), the diffusion of fluids through 



membranes. 

 Ox'y-gen (Greek oxys, sharp, acid, and -gen, producing, as it was 



supposed to be present in all acids), an element forming about 



one fifth of the air we breathe. 

 Pal'ate (Latin palatum, roof of mouth), a bone forming part of the 



roof of the mouth and floor of the nose. 

 Pan'cre-as (Greek, pan, all, andfcreas, flesh), an important digestive 



gland located just back of and below the stomach ; the sweet- 

 bread. 

 Par'a-site (Greek para, beside, and sitos, food; parasites, eating 



beside another at his table), an organism that lives on or 



within the body of another. 

 Pa-ri'e-tal bones (Latin paries, a wall), the large bones at the top 



and sides of the skull. 

 Pa-rot' id (Greek para, near, beside, and ous, otos, ear), the salivary 



gland just below and in front of the ear. 

 Pa-tel'la (Latin, small pan), the kneepan. 

 Pel'vis (Latin, basin), the lower part of the abdomen. 

 Pen'ni-form (Latin penna, feather, and -form), shaped like a feather. 

 Per'i-car'di-um (Greek peri, about, and kardia, heart), a saclike 



membrane covering the heart. 

 Per'i-lymph (Greek peri, around, and Latin lympha, water), the 



liquid found in the bony labyrinth of the inner ear. 

 Per'i-os'te-um (Greek peri, around, and osteon, bone), the thin mem- 

 brane covering a bone. 

 Per'i-stal'sis (Greek peri, around, and stellein, to place, arrange), 



the wavelike contractions running along the alimentary canal, 



which push the contents onward. 

 Phar'ynx (Greek, throat), a funnel-shaped organ back of the nose 



and mouth. It serves as a food passage, as an air passage, 



and as an organ of voice. 

 Plas'ma (Greek plassein, to form), the liquid portion of the blood. 



It carries the corpuscles and the solid foods. 

 Pleu'ra (Greek, ribs), a saclike membrane covering the lungs and 



lining the thorax. 



Pneu-mo'ni-a (Greek pneumon, lung), a disease of the lungs. 

 Pons (Latin, bridge), a band of nerve tissue connecting the bulb 



with the cerebrum and with the cerebellum. 



