Ossicles

Literally meaning "small bones" the term ossicles is generally used as a collective term for the small bones of the middle ear. Referred to as the malleus, incus and stapes (or hammer, anvil, and stirrup) these bones function in the middle ear to conduct sound waves through the fluid of the cochlea to transmit sound from the environment to the brain. These bones are the smallest in the human body with the stapes being the smallest.