marrow¹

[mar-oh] /ˈmær oʊ/

noun

Anatomy. a soft, fatty, vascular tissue in the interior cavities of bones that is a major site of blood cell production.

the inmost or essential part:

to pierce to the marrow of a problem.

strength or vitality:

Fear took the marrow out of him.

rich and nutritious food.

Chiefly British, vegetable marrow.

Origin

before 900; Middle English mar(o)we, Old English mearg; cognate with Dutch merg, German Mark, Old Norse mergr

Related forms

marrowish, adjective

marrowless, adjective

marrowy, adjective

marrow²

[mar-oh; Scot. mar-uh] /ˈmær oʊ; Scot. ˈmær ə/

noun, Scot. and North England

a partner; fellow worker.

a spouse; helpmate.

a companion; close friend.

Origin

1400-50; late Middle English marwe fellow worker, partner, perhaps < Old Norse margr friendly, literally, many

Examples from the web for marrow

Bone marrow culture is an examination of the soft, fatty tissue found inside certain bones.
The bone marrow was the source of the stem cells that made the procedure newsworthy.
Bones are smashed with rocks and the marrow sucked out.
But researchers in various labs are making progress towards milder methods of cleaning bone marrow that humans could tolerate.
Cut marks suggest that stone tools were used to remove the flesh from the bones and to extract marrow.
Bone marrow grows inside some of the larger bones in the body.
Cancellous bone provides the framework on which bone marrow cells grow and also makes essential minerals available to the body.
Bone marrow is the soft tissue inside bones that helps form blood cells.
They then filled the spinal cavity around the injured area with blocks of hydrogel laced with stem cells from rat bone marrow.
The company isolates, cultures and processes adult stem cells from a patient's bone marrow or synovial fluid.

British Dictionary definitions for marrow

marrow¹

/ˈmærəʊ/

noun

the fatty network of connective tissue that fills the cavities of bones

the vital part; essence

vitality

rich food

(Brit) short for vegetable marrow

Derived Forms

marrowy, adjective

Word Origin

Old English mærg; related to Old Frisian merg, Old Norse mergr

marrow²

/ˈmærəʊ; -rə/

noun

(Northeast English, dialect, mainly Durham) a companion, esp a workmate

Word Origin

C15 marwe fellow worker, perhaps of Scandinavian origin; compare Icelandic margr friendly

Word Origin and History for marrow

late 14c., from Old English mearg "marrow," earlier mærh, from Proto-Germanic *mazga- (cf. Old Norse mergr, Old Saxon marg, Old Frisian merg, Middle Dutch march, Dutch merg, Old High German marg, German Mark "marrow"), from PIE *mozgo- "marrow" (cf. Sanskrit majjan-, Avestan mazga- "marrow," Old Church Slavonic mozgu, Lithuanian smagenes "brain"). Figurative sense of "inmost or central part" is attested from c.1400.

marrow in Medicine

marrow mar·row (mār'ō)
n.

Bone marrow.
The spinal cord.

marrow in Science

marrow

(mār'ō)
See bone marrow.

marrow in Culture

marrow definition

The soft, specialized connective tissue that fills the cavities of bones. One kind of bone marrow is responsible for manufacturing red blood cells in the body.