polyp
UK /ˈpɒlɪp/ · US /ˈpɑlɪp/ noun
Forms polyps
- noun (zoology) A cylindrical coelenterate, such as the hydra, having a mouth surrounded with tentacles.
- noun The sessile life stage of many cnidarians, whose free-swimming stage, if present, is the medusa.
- noun (medicine) An abnormal growth protruding from a mucous membrane.
Synonyms
Etymology
From Latin polypus (“a polyp, a polypus in the nose”), from Ancient Greek πολύπους (polúpous, from πολύς (polús, “many”) + πούς (poús, “foot”)). Doublet of polypus.
Webster’s 1913
- noun Same as Anthozoa. See Anthozoa, Madreporaria, Hydroid. [Written also polype.] Fresh-water polyp, the hydra.
Etymology [L. polypus, Gr. polype. See Poly- and Foot, and cf. Polypode, Polypody, Poulp.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “polyp”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details