osseux

Osseux is the French adjective meaning "bony" or "osseous," relating to bone tissue or the skeletal system. In English, the corresponding term is osseous. The root derives from Latin osseus from os, bone. In anatomy, osseous describes structures composed of bone or pertaining to bone, such as the osseous system (the skeleton), osseous tissue, and osseous surfaces or joints.

Osseous tissue, or bone tissue, is a mineralized connective tissue that forms the skeleton. It consists of an extracellular matrix rich in collagen and mineral crystals (primarily hydroxyapatite) and a population of bone cells: osteoblasts build bone, osteocytes maintain it, and osteoclasts resorb it. The tissue organizes into cortical (compact) bone and trabecular (cancellous) bone, enabling strength with relatively low weight. Bone develops through intramembranous and endochondral ossification, and continually undergoes remodeling in response to mechanical stress and metabolic needs.

In pathology, osseous changes can occur in diseases such as osteoporosis (reduced bone density), osteomalacia (softening due to defective mineralization), or osteosarcoma (bone cancer). Imaging often emphasizes osseous structures to assess integrity.

The term is used in medical, anatomical, and embryological literature to distinguish bony from cartilaginous or soft tissues. While "osseux" is common in French, "osseous" is its standard English equivalent.