scalene muscle

scalene muscle

n.

Any of three muscles on each side of the neck that serve to bend and rotate the neck and that assist breathing by raising or fixing the first two ribs. Also called scalenus.

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

scalene muscle - any of four pairs of muscles extending from the cervical vertebrae to the second rib; involved in moving the neck and in breathing musculus scalenus, scalenus skeletal muscle, striated muscle - a muscle that is connected at either or both ends to a bone and so move parts of the skeleton; a muscle that is characterized by transverse stripes