pl. n. (sing. naris) openings of the nose. The two external (or anterior) nares are the nostrils, leading from the nasal cavity to the outside. The two internal (or posterior) nares (choanae) are the openings leading from the nasal cavity into the pharynx.
n. a muscular tube, lined with mucous membrane, that extends from the beginning of the oesophagus (gullet) up to the base of the skull. It is divided into the *nasopharynx, *oropharynx, and *hypopharynx (see illustration) and it communicates with the posterior *nares, *Eustachian tube, the mouth, larynx, and oesophagus. The pharynx acts as a passageway for food from the mouth to the oesophagus, and as an air passage from the nasal cavity and mouth to the larynx. It also acts as a resonating chamber for the sounds produced in the larynx. —pharyngeal adj.... pharynx
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