esophagus

noun

esoph·​a·​gus i-ˈsä-fə-gəs 

plural esophagi i-ˈsä-fə-ˌgī  -ˌjī 

: a muscular tube that conveys food from the mouth to the stomach and that in humans is about nine inches (23 centimeters) long and passes from the pharynx down the neck between the trachea and the spinal column and behind the left bronchus where it pierces the diaphragm slightly to the left of the middle line and joins the cardiac end of the stomach

esophageal

i-ˌsä-fə-ˈjē-əl 

adjective

Examples of esophagus in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Back in January, former Surgeon General Vivek Murthy issued an advisory linking alcohol consumption to the risk of developing seven different types of cancer, including those of the breast, colorectal, esophagus, liver, mouth, throat and voice box (larynx). —Manuela López Restrepo, NPR, 10 Mar. 2025

Potential risks of alcohol Previous research has linked alcoholic beverages to at least seven types of cancer, including the mouth, throat, voice box, esophagus, liver, colon and breast. —Shiv Sudhakar, Fox News, 27 Feb. 2025

Early land vertebrates also evolved lungs, and this transformation freed up the gill structures that fish used for breathing to evolve into various useful – and sometimes problematic – neck structures, such as the voice box, tonsils and the little flap that separates the windpipe and esophagus. —Kent Dunlap, The Conversation, 10 Feb. 2025

My father died of cancer of the esophagus and his liver. —Jessi Roti, Bon Appétit, 20 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English ysophagus, from Medieval Latin ysofugus, from Greek oisophagos, from oisein to be going to carry + phagein to eat — more at baksheesh

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for esophagus

• phytophagous
• sarcophagus
• oesophagus

Kids Definition

esophagus

noun

esoph·​a·​gus i-ˈsäf-ə-gəs 

plural esophagi -ˌgī 

-ˌjī

: a muscular tube that leads from the cavity behind the mouth to the stomach

esophageal

-ˌsäf-ə-ˈjē-əl 

adjective

Medical Definition

esophagus

noun

esoph·​a·​gus

variants or chiefly British oesophagus

i-ˈsäf-ə-gəs 

plural esophagi -ˌgī  -ˌjī 

: a muscular tube that in adult humans is about nine inches (23 centimeters) long and passes from the pharynx down the neck between the trachea and the spinal column and behind the left bronchus where it pierces the diaphragm slightly to the left of the middle line and joins the cardiac end of the stomach