muscle spindle

noun

Cell Biology. a proprioceptor in skeletal muscle, composed of striated muscle fibers and sensory nerve endings in a connective tissue sheath, that conveys information via the spinal nerves on the state of muscle stretch, important in the reflex mechanism that maintains body posture.

Origin of muscle spindle

First recorded in 1890–95

Words nearby muscle spindle

muscle sense, muscle serum, muscle shirt, muscle shoals, muscle spasm, muscle spindle, muscle-bound, musclebound, muscleman, muscles of auditory ossicles, muscles of eyeball

Medical definitions for muscle spindle

muscle spindle

n.

A stretch receptor found in vertebrate muscle.