Men have Adam’s apples for the same basic reason everyone does: it’s the front wall of the voice box (larynx), made of thyroid cartilage, which just grows larger and sticks out more in males after puberty. The extra growth is driven mainly by testosterone, which also deepens the voice.

What an Adam’s apple actually is

  • The Adam’s apple is the laryngeal prominence, a bump of thyroid cartilage on the front of the neck.
  • It sits in front of and helps shield the vocal cords and upper airway.
  • Both men and women have this cartilage; it just isn’t always visible from the outside.

Why it’s bigger in men

  • During male puberty, testosterone makes the larynx grow larger and the cartilage angle sharper, so it juts forward and becomes obvious as an Adam’s apple.
  • The bigger larynx lengthens and thickens the vocal folds, so they vibrate more slowly and produce a deeper voice.
  • In most females, the larynx also grows but less dramatically, so the front cartilage stays rounder and flatter and doesn’t protrude as much.

Do all men have one? Do women?

  • Everyone with a typical larynx has the same structures; some men just have a less prominent bump, and some women have quite visible Adam’s apples.
  • Visibility depends on cartilage shape, overall neck anatomy, body fat, and individual hormone effects, not just “being male.”
  • Having a big, small, or barely visible Adam’s apple has no inherent health meaning for most people.

Does it have a special purpose?

  • Functionally, its main role is structural: protecting the vocal cords and helping maintain the shape of the upper airway.
  • It is considered a secondary sex characteristic in men, like facial hair or a broader jaw, because it changes at puberty and affects how the voice sounds.
  • Beyond protection and voice resonance, there is no clear extra “special” job; people can even have the cartilage shaved for cosmetic reasons without major voice problems when done carefully.

A quick myth and evolutionary angle

  • The name “Adam’s apple” comes from a biblical legend about a piece of fruit stuck in Adam’s throat, but that story has no scientific basis.
  • Some researchers and popular science explanations suggest deeper male voices may have offered social or mating advantages (intimidation, perceived dominance or attractiveness), which makes the prominent larynx part of a broader vocal signal package, though this remains partly speculative.

TL;DR: Men have Adam’s apples because testosterone makes their larynx grow larger and sharper at puberty, pushing the thyroid cartilage out into a visible bump that protects the vocal cords and helps give them a deeper voice.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.