Definitions

1. noun

a long bone of the limb, especially the femur, humerus, or tibia, consisting of a shaft and two ends, the proximal and distal epiphyses, which are separated from the shaft by a growth plate, the epiphyseal plate, in the young animal.

“The femur is divided into diaphyses, the shaft and the epiphyses, the ends.”

2. plural noun

the long bones of a limb

“The diaphyses of the human limbs are subject to various forms of injury and disease.”