musclenoun
uk/ˈmʌs.əl/us/ˈmʌs.əl/muscle noun (BODY PART)
B2 [ C or U ] one of many tissues in the body that can tighten and relax to produce movement:
neck/back/leg/stomach muscles
facial muscles
bulging/rippling (= large and clear to see) muscles
He flexed his muscles (= tightened them to make them look large and strong) so that everyone could admire them.
These exercises build muscle and increase stamina.
a muscle spasm (= a sudden uncontrollable tightening movement)
pull a muscle
C1 to injure a muscle by stretching it too far so that it is very painful:
Russell pulled a back muscle early in the game.
More examples
- The contraction of this muscle raises the lower arm.
- A work-out in the gym will exercise all the major muscle groups.
- He pulled a muscle in his groin.
- Barkley suffered a strained thigh muscle late in the preseason.
- I pulled a muscle in my back lifting some drawers.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Substances & structures in the body
- abductor
- accessorius
- adductor
- agonist
- amyloid
- atheroma
- caecum
- grey matter
- gyrus
- hallucis
- hilum
- hilus
- lymph vessel
- peptic
- periosteum
- peritoneal
- peritoneum
- phosphatase
- vitreous humour
- xiphoid
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You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:
Injuring and injuries
muscle noun (POWER)
[ U ] the power to do difficult things or to make people behave in a certain way:
This magazine has considerable financial muscle and can afford to pay top journalists.
The company lacks the marketing muscle to compete with drug giants.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Power to control
- ascendancy
- big beast
- buy-in
- chairmanship
- determination
- discipline
- dominant
- juice
- leadership
- lever
- leverage
- manipulation
- mastery
- oversight
- responsibility
- sphere of influence
- spin control
- state-controlled
- states' rights
- tooth
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