cloaca
UK /kləʊ̯ˈeɪ̯.kə/ · US /kloʊ̯ˈeɪ̯.kə/ noun
Forms cloacas cloacae
- noun (sometimes figurative) A sewer.
- noun (anatomy, zoology) The opening in reptiles, amphibians and birds, as well as elasmobranchians, lobe-finned fishes, and monotreme mammals, which serves as the common outlet for the urogenital ducts and rectum.
- noun An outhouse or lavatory.
- noun (anatomy) A duct through which gangrenous material escapes a body.
- noun (embryology) Structure in the embryo during the development of the reproductive and urinary systems.
Synonyms
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin cloāca (“sewer”), related to cluō (“cleanse; purge”), but the derivation is uncertain.
Webster’s 1913
Etymology [L.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “cloaca”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details