: the part of the hand or forefoot that contains the metacarpals
Word History
Etymology
New Latin
First Known Use
1676, in the meaning defined above
Medical Definition
metacarpus
noun
meta·car·pus ˌmet-ə-ˈkär-pəs
: the part of the human hand or the front foot in quadrupeds between the carpus and the phalanges that contains five more or less elongated bones when all the digits are present (as in humans) but is modified in many animals by the loss or reduction of some bones or the fusing of adjacent bones