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Abducens nerve

Etymology:

From New Latin nervus abdūcēns: “nerve leading away”; from L. abducere: “to lead away”—from ab (“away”) + ducere (“to lead”)

Definition:

Each of the sixth pair of cranial nerves that are the motor nerves supplying the lateral rectus muscle in the eye, so called because it innervates the muscle that leads the eyeball away to the side of the head (i.e., controls the outward gaze).



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