auditory nerve

The nerve that connects the inner ear with the brain. One of its two branches carries the sensation of sound to the brain; the other is involved in maintaining balance.

The noun has one meaning:

Meaning #1: a composite sensory nerve supplying the hair cells of the vestibular organ and the hair cells of the cochlea
  Synonyms: acoustic nerve, vestibulocochlear nerve, nervus vestibulocochlearis, eighth cranial nerve