from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Trapezium \Tra*pe"zi*um\, n.; pl. E. {Trapeziums}, L.
{Trapezia}. [NL., fr. Gr. ? a little table, an irregular
four-sided figure, dim. of ? a table, for ?; ? (see {Tetra-})
+ ? foot, akin to ? foot; hence, originally, a table with
four feet. See {Foot}.]
1. (Geom.) A plane figure bounded by four right lines, of
which no two are parallel.
[1913 Webster]
2. (Anat.)
(a) A bone of the carpus at the base of the first
metacarpal, or thumb.
(b) A region on the ventral side of the brain, either just
back of the pons Varolii, or, as in man, covered by
the posterior extension of its transverse fibers.
[1913 Webster]