cranial fossa

noun

: any of the three large depressions in the posterior, middle, and anterior aspects of the floor of the cranial cavity:

a

: the posterior one that is the largest and deepest of the three and lodges the cerebellum, pons, and medulla oblongata

called also posterior cranial fossa, posterior fossa

b

: the middle one that lodges the temporal lobes laterally and the hypothalamus medially

called also middle cranial fossa, middle fossa

c

: the anterior one that lodges the frontal lobes

called also anterior cranial fossa, anterior fossa