pharyngeal jaws

Meanings

1. A secondary set of toothed bones or cartilage located deep within a fish's pharynx (or throat), behind the primary oral jaws; this second set of jaws are distinct from the main mouth jaws and are typically used to process food (like crushing, grinding, or tearing) and transport it to the esophagus, after the primary jaws have captured the prey.

Etymology

From pharyngeal + jaw.