sinew

[sin-yoo] /ˈsɪn yu/
noun
1.
a tendon.
2.
Often, sinews. the source of strength, power, or vigor:
the sinews of the nation.
3.
strength; power; resilience:
a man of great moral sinew.
verb (used with object)
4.
to furnish with sinews; strengthen, as by sinews.
Origin
before 900; Middle English; Old English sinu (nominative), sinuwe (genitive); cognate with Dutch zenuw, German Sehne, Old Norse sin; akin to Sanskrit snāva sinew
Related forms
sinewless, adjective
unsinewed, adjective
unsinewing, adjective
Examples from the web for sinew
  • He smears bitumen from an old car battery onto the end of the shaft, heats it again, and binds twine made of kudu sinew around it.
  • It's a complicated, messy piece of anatomy, with sinew and hide hanging off one end.
  • Every movement was sure and purposeful as they approached in a rippling of sinew and muscle.
  • There was a fresh leg with sinew and bones but no flesh.
  • The mountains-which look as if they've been skinned, showing vein and sinew-break the eerie flatness.
  • The tough skin on the outside of large fillet should be removed, also the sinew from mignon fillet.
  • In them, the dancer regains her human flesh and sinew.
  • The ship is the heart and sinew of all who sail in her.
  • His bold, simple lines pop from the page, and he doesn't overembellish or weigh down his drawings with too much sinew.
  • Then add to that, legs with no flesh, muscle or sinew and you have a recipe for disaster.
British Dictionary definitions for sinew

sinew

/ˈsɪnjuː/
noun
1.
(anatomy) another name for tendon
2.
(often pl)
  1. a source of strength or power
  2. a literary word for muscle
Derived Forms
sinewless, adjective
Word Origin
Old English sionu; related to Old Norse sin, Old Saxon sinewa, Old High German senawa sinew, Lettish pasainis string
Word Origin and History for sinew
n.

Old English seonowe, oblique form of nominative sionu "sinew," from Proto-Germanic *senawo (cf. Old Saxon sinewa, Old Norse sina, Old Frisian sine, Middle Dutch senuwe, Dutch zenuw, Old High German senawa, German Sehne), from PIE root *sai- "to tie, bind" (cf. Sanskrit snavah "sinew," Avestan snavar, Irish sin "chain").

sinew in Medicine

sinew sin·ew (sĭn'yōō)
n.

  1. A tendon.

  2. Vigorous strength; muscular power.