-ˌsmēdēˈalə̇s, -ˈāl-, -ˈäl- noun
Etymology: New Latin, literally, great medial (muscle)
: a division of the quadriceps muscle covering the inner anterior aspect of the femur, arising chiefly from that bone and the adjacent intermuscular septum, inserted into the inner border of the patella and into the tendon of the other divisions of the muscle, sending also a tendinous expansion to the capsule of the knee joint and being closely united and in the upper part often inseparably with the vastus intermedius