ˈpänz noun
or pons va·ro·lii -vəˈrōlēˌī
( plural pon·tes ˈpän.(ˌ)tēz ; or pontes varolii )
Usage: usually capitalized V
Etymology: pons, New Latin, from Latin, bridge; pons varolii, New Latin, literally, bridge of Varoli, after Costanzo Varoli died 1575 Italian surgeon and anatomist — more at find
: a broad mass of chiefly transverse nerve fibers conspicuous on the ventral surface of the brain of man and lower mammals at the anterior end of the medulla oblongata, extending up in a robust cord on either side to form the middle cerebellar peduncle, and enclosing irregular masses of gray matter which serve as important relay stations in the path from the cerebral cortex to the opposite side of the cerebellum — see brain illustration