coccyx
UK[ˈkɒksɪks]US[ˈkɑːksɪks]
n
the small bone at the bottom of the spine, formed from fused vertebrae; the tailbone.
Etymology
the word 'coccyx' was borrowed directly into english from the latin 'coccyx', which itself was taken from the ancient greek 'kokkyx' (κόκκυξ), meaning 'cuckoo'. the greek anatomist galen is credited with this nomenclature, as he observed that the small, curved bone at the base of the human spine resembled the shape of a cuckoo's beak. this is a classic example of a metaphor fossilized into anatomical terminology, where a visual analogy from the natural world provided a lasting name for a bodily structure. the term passed through latin into scientific english with its form and specialized meaning intact.
Analysis
the word is a simplex loanword from greek. it is not productively segmented in modern english spelling.
Examples
she fell and bruised her coccyx on the hard step.
the coccyx is a vestigial structure, a remnant of what was once a tail.
pain in the coccyx, known as coccydynia, can be quite debilitating.