] ̷ ̷ ̷ ̷+\ noun
Etymology: New Latin, from meta- + tarsus
1. : the part of the foot in man or of the hind foot in quadrupeds that is between the tarsus and phalanges, contains when all the digits are present five more or less elongated bones but is modified in many animals with loss or reduction of some bones or fusing of others, and forms in man the instep, in horses and cattle the part of the hind leg from the hock to the fetlock joint, and in birds the tarso-metatarsus
2.
a. : the proximal segment of the tarsus of an insect
b. : the tarsus of the posterior pair of legs of an insect
c. : the proximal segment of the foot of a spider