tentacle

English

Etymology

From New Latin tentaculum, from tentō.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈtɛntəkəl/, /ˈtɛntɨkəl/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Noun

tentacle (plural tentacles)

1. An elongated, boneless, flexible organ or limb of some animals, such as the octopus and squid.
   • 1873, Jules Verne, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea

     With one blow of the axe, Captain Nemo cut this formidable tentacle, that slid wriggling down the ladder.

   • 1897, H. G. Wells, The Crystal Egg

     The body was small, but fitted with two bunches of prehensile organs, like long tentacles, immediately under the mouth.

   • 1936, H. P. Lovecraft, The Shadow Out of Time

     Surmounting this head were four slender grey stalks bearing flower-like appendages, whilst from its nether side dangled eight greenish antennae or tentacles.

Derived terms

• tentacular

Translations

elongated, boneless, flexible appendage

• Belarusian: шчупальца n (ščúpalʹca)
• Bulgarian: пипало (bg) n (pipálo)
• Catalan: tentacle (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 觸手 (zh), 触手 (zh) (chùshǒu)

• Czech: chapadlo (cs) n
• Dutch: tentakel (nl) n
• Finnish: lonkero (fi)
• French: tentacule (fr) m
• Galician: tentáculo m
• Georgian: საცეცი (saceci)
• German: Tentakel (de) m
• Greek: πλοκάμι (el) n (plokámi)
• Irish: adharcán m

• Japanese: 触手 (しょくしゅ, shokushu)
• Korean: 촉수 (ko) (choksu) (觸手 (ko))
• Latvian: tausteklis m
• Maori: kāwai, wekeweke, ngongotua, patapata
• Occitan: tentacul m
• Polish: macka n
• Portuguese: tentáculo (pt) m
• Russian: щу́пальце (ru) n (ščúpalʹce)
• Serbo-Croatian: pipak (sh) m, pipaljka f, пипак m, пипаљка f
• Slovak: chápadlo n
• Spanish: tentáculo m
• Swedish: tentakel (sv) c
• Tagalog: galamay
• Ukrainian: щупальце n (ščúpalʹce)

Anagrams

• ectental, electant

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Catalan

Noun

tentacle m (plural tentacles)

1. tentacle