superior thyroid artery

superior thyroid artery (plural superior thyroid arteries)

1. (anatomy) One of two arteries supplying the thyroid gland and nearby structures at the front of the neck that branches from the external carotid artery or sometimes from the common carotid artery at the level of the thyrohyal of the hyoid bone and that gives off branches to nearby muscles and to the thyroid gland.

   Hyponyms: cricothyroid artery, superior laryngeal artery

   Coordinate terms: inferior thyroid artery, thyroid ima artery

• “thyroid artery”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.