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# skeleton

«skeleton» in Mova's school dictionary: **The frame of bones that supports and protects the body of…** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 5 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

### part of speech

noun (a skeleton, skeletons); adjective (skeleton — the smallest number needed: skeleton staff)

### meaning for a pupil

1) The frame of bones that supports and protects the body of a human or an animal. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/skeleton/#m1)

2) A model or picture of these bones, often used in science lessons or at Halloween. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/skeleton/#m2)

3) The main frame or structure of something, like a building or a story plan. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/skeleton/#m3)

4) Skeleton staff / crew: the smallest number of people needed to keep something running. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/skeleton/#m4)

5) A skeleton in the cupboard/closet: an embarrassing secret. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/skeleton/#m5)

6) A skeleton can also mean a person who is extremely thin. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/skeleton/#m6)

### sense in the lessons

In science the skeleton has three jobs: support, protection (skull protects the brain, ribs protect heart and lungs) and movement (with muscles at joints). An adult human has 206 bones; babies have more that later join. Some animals have exoskeletons (outside skeletons) like insects and crabs; vertebrates have a backbone. Phrases: human skeleton, skeleton key, skeleton in the closet, skeleton staff.

### examples

- The skeleton protects our heart and brain. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/skeleton/#x1)
- An adult human skeleton has 206 bones. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/skeleton/#x2)
- Insects have a skeleton on the outside called an exoskeleton. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/skeleton/#x3)
- We saw a dinosaur skeleton at the museum. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/skeleton/#x4)
- Your skeleton and muscles work together so you can move. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/skeleton/#x5)
- We made a plan — a skeleton of our story — before writing. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/skeleton/#x6)
- She dressed up as a skeleton for Halloween. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/skeleton/#x7)
- Over the holidays the office runs with a skeleton staff. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/skeleton/#x8)
- Till thy skin shrivels up and thou art a skeleton! [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/skeleton/#x9)

### note

Countable: a skeleton, skeletons. Babies are born with about 300 bones, some of which fuse, giving 206 in adults. «Skeleton in the cupboard» (UK) = «skeleton in the closet» (US).

### In the corpora

- [A shark's skeleton is made of cartilage, which is lighter and bendier than bone, so shark fossils are mostly teeth.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/28-sharks/6/)
- [A tortoise's shell is part of its skeleton, joined to its ribs and backbone, so it can never leave it.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/88-reptile-house-komodo-chameleons-tortoises-crocodiles/10/)
- [Corals are tiny animals called polyps that build limestone skeletons; algae living inside them make food from sunlight and share it.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/90-aquarium-the-coral-reef-tank/9/)
- [Some Smilodon skeletons show healed injuries, so scientists think they may have lived in groups, though this is still argued about.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/131-ice-age-sabre-tooths-ground-sloths-and-scrat/7/)
- [Sauropod bones had air pockets inside, as birds' bones do, which made the skeleton lighter and helped breathing.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/266-the-long-necked-giants-sauropods/7/)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every meaning and example of «skeleton» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/S/skeleton/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.