APA Dictionary of Psychology

a column of tissue on the inferior (lower) side of the body of the penis that surrounds the urethra and extends into the glans penis. Above it lie the two columns of the corpora cavernosa (see corpus cavernosum). The three columns, which are bound together by connective tissue, make up the erectile tissue of the penis. However, the corpus spongiosum does not become as erect as the corpora cavernosa during an erection. Also called corpus cavernosum urethrae.