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throat

(throte)
The hollow, muscular tube inside the neck that starts behind the nose and ends at the top of the trachea (windpipe) and esophagus (the tube that goes to the stomach). The throat acts as a passageway for air to enter the lungs and food and liquid to enter the esophagus. It contains many structures, including the tonsils, adenoids, pharynx, and larynx.
Anatomy of the throat; drawing shows the pharynx, which includes the nasopharynx, oropharynx, and hypopharynx. Also shown are the adenoids, tonsils, larynx, esophagus, and trachea.Enlarge this image in new window
Anatomy of the throat. The throat is a hollow, muscular tube inside the neck that acts as a passageway for air to enter the lungs and for food and liquid to enter the esophagus. It contains many structures, including the adenoids, tonsils, pharynx (the nasopharynx, oropharynx, and hypopharynx), larynx, esophagus, and trachea.
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