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To excite; to irritate; especially, to excite the activity of (a nerve or an irritable muscle), as by electricity.

The irritating action of various agents (stimuli) on muscles, nerves, or a sensory end organ, by which activity is evoked; especially, the nervous impulse produced by various agents on nerves, or a sensory end organ, by which the part connected with the nerve is thrown into a state of activity; irritation.…

Physiol.), any substance or agent capable of evoking the activity of a nerve or irritable muscle, or capable of producing an impression upon a sensory organ or more particularly upon its specific end organ.

-- a defect due either to undue contraction or to undue relaxation of one or more of the muscles which move the eyeball; squinting; cross-eye.

The operation for the removal of squinting by the division of such muscles as distort the eyeball.

To injure in the muscles or joints by causing to make too strong an effort; to harm by overexertion; to sprain; as, to strain a horse by overloading; to strain the wrist; to strain a muscle. Prudes decayed about may track, Strain their necks with looking back. Swift.

To draw or pull out to greater length; to strain; as, to stretch a tendon or muscle. Awake, my soul, stretch every nerve. Doddridge.

witching of the hinder leg of a horse, or an involuntary or convulsive contraction of the muscles that raise the hock. [Written also springhalt.]

Situated below the costas, or ribs; as, the subcostal muscles.

Situated underneath a muscle or muscles.

Situated beneath the scapula; infrascapular; as, the subscapular muscle.

ariety of sugar characteristic of fresh milk, and isomeric with sucrose. See Lactose. -- Muscle sugar, a sweet white crystalline substance isomeric with, and formerly regarded to, the glucoses. It is found in the tissue of muscle, the heart, liver, etc. Called also heart sugar. See Inosite. -- Pine sugar. See Pinite.…

A muscle which produces the motion of supination.

Fitted or serving to suspend; suspending; as, a suspensory muscle. Ray.

An atrophy of the muscles of the shoulder in horses; also, atrophy of any muscle in horses. [Written also swinney.]

In form and habits the swifts resemble swallows, but they are destitute of complex vocal muscles and are not singing birds, but belong to a widely different group allied to the humming birds.

s of a continuous mass of protoplasm in which nuclei are imbedded, as in ordinary striped muscle.

Working together; coöperating; as, synergetic muscles.

A proteid substance (acid albumin) formed from the albuminous matter of muscle by the action of dilute acids; -- formerly called musculin. See Acid albumin, under Albumin.

Of or pertaining to the syrinx; as, the syringeal muscle.