The Armpit Has a Formal Name: Axilla
The armpit is the hollow under the arm. Medicine calls it the axilla, and it is a busier place than it looks.
The armpit is the hollow beneath the joint where the arm meets the shoulder. Anatomy calls it the *axilla*, and it is dense with structures: lymph nodes, major nerves and the axillary artery all pass through. That is why breast cancer staging examines the axillary nodes so closely.
- The hollow under the arm. *Under the armpit.*
- An unpleasant place (slang). *The armpit of the county.*
- Axilla — the anatomical term. *Axillary lymph nodes.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | armpit | A sore armpit. |
| Plural | armpits | Both armpits. |
| Medical | axilla | The left axilla. |
| Adjective | axillary | Axillary nodes. |
| Related | underarm | Underarm deodorant. |
How it is used in a sentence
- The doctor checked the axillary nodes.Clinical.
- An underarm serve.Tennis, from the same body part.
- Temperature can be taken under the arm.Axillary temperature.
What is in the axilla
- Lymph nodes — drain the arm and chest wall
- Brachial plexus — the nerve bundle serving the arm
- Axillary artery and vein — the main blood supply to the arm
- Apocrine glands — the sweat glands associated with body odour
- Hair follicles — which develop at puberty
A plain English compound of *arm* and *pit*, recorded from the fourteenth century. *Axilla* is the Latin word for the same hollow.
Why do armpits smell?
Apocrine sweat itself is nearly odourless. Skin bacteria break it down, and the products of that process create the smell.
What is axillary temperature?
A temperature taken under the arm. It is convenient but reads slightly lower than an oral or rectal reading.