"a small bone; small, hard, bone-like nodule," 1570s, from Latin ossiculum, diminutive of os "bone" (from PIE root *ost- "bone").
Entries linking to ossicle
*ost-
Proto-Indo-European root meaning "bone."
It forms all or part of: osseous; ossicle; ossuary; ossifrage; ossify; osteo-; osteology; osteopathy; ostracism; ostracize; oyster; periosteum.
It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by: Sanskrit asthi, Hittite hashtai-, Greek osteon "bone," Greek ostrakon "oyster shell," Avestan ascu- "shinbone," Latin os (genitive ossis) "bone," osseus "bony, of bone," Welsh asgwrn, Armenian oskr, Albanian asht "bone."