Piriform, sometimes ''pyriform'', means pear-shaped (from

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

''pirum'' "pear" and ''forma'' "shape"). It may also refer to:

Going pear-shaped

* Going wrong or going pear-shaped

Anatomy

Piriform aperture The piriform aperture, pyriform aperture, or anterior nasal aperture, is a pear-shaped opening in the human skull. Its long axis is vertical, and narrow end upward; in the recent state it is much contracted by the lateral nasal cartilage and the g ...

, more commonly known as anterior nasal aperture *

Piriform cortex The piriform cortex, or pyriform cortex, is a region in the brain, part of the rhinencephalon situated in the cerebrum. The function of the piriform cortex relates to the sense of smell. Structure The piriform cortex is part of the rhinencephalo ...

, a region in the brain *

Piriformis muscle The piriformis muscle () is a flat, pyramidally-shaped muscle in the gluteal region of the lower limbs. It is one of the six muscles in the lateral rotator group. The piriformis muscle has its origin upon the front surface of the sacrum, and inse ...

, a gluteal muscle *

Piriformis syndrome Piriformis syndrome is a condition which is believed to result from compression of the sciatic nerve by the piriformis muscle. Symptoms may include pain and numbness in the buttocks and down the leg. Often symptoms are worsened with sitting or r ...

, a neuromuscular disorder in which piriformis muscle compresses the sciatic nerve * Piriform sinus, piriform recess or piriform fossa, synonyms referring to one of the four sites of the hypopharynx * the pear

female body shape Female body shape or female figure is the cumulative product of a woman's skeletal structure and the quantity and distribution of muscle and fat on the body. There is a wide range of normality of female body shapes. Female figures are typicall ...

Other uses

Piriform (company) Piriform Software Ltd is a British software company based in London, owned since 2017 by Avast which itself become part of NortonLifeLock (now Gen Digital) in 2022. The company develops cleaning and optimisation tools for Microsoft Windows, macO ...

, a software company * Piriform, in

hydrostatic equilibrium In fluid mechanics, hydrostatic equilibrium (hydrostatic balance, hydrostasy) is the condition of a fluid or plastic solid at rest, which occurs when external forces, such as gravity, are balanced by a pressure-gradient force. In the planetary ...

* Pyriform, a teapot shape introduced in the 18th century {{disambiguation