I. (ˈ)skwā|mōsəl, skwəˈm-, -ōzəl adjective
Etymology: Latin squamos us squamous + English -al
: scalelike:
a. : squamous
b.
[New Latin squamosa + English -al ]
: of, relating to, or constituting a membrane bone of the skull of many vertebrates that is external and more or less dorsal to the auditory capsule and corresponds to the squamous portion of the temporal bone of man
II. noun
( -s )
1. : the squamosal bone
2. : the pterotic of a teleost fish