Subclavian

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Relating to or situated beneath the clavicle, particularly in reference to blood vessels or nerves adjacent to this bone
2. Characterizing the artery that supplies blood to the upper limb and parts of the thorax
3. Describing the vein responsible for draining blood from the same regions, lying in proximity to the collarbone

Etymology: "Subclavian" is a plain anatomical coinage, built from Latin pieces that describe exactly where the vessel runs. Its root is "clavicula", the little key, a diminutive of "clavis", and in Latin it was used for the collarbone, perhaps because the bone resembles an old-fashioned key or bolt. Put "sub-", meaning "under", in front of it and you get "subclavius", literally "under the collarbone", a name for the muscle that lies beneath that bone. Anatomists in New Latin then took that adjective and added the English-style adjectival ending "-ian", giving a term for the vessels passing under the collarbone. The artery so named runs beneath the clavicle on its way to the arm, which is why the word describes the artery and the nearby structures of the upper chest.