English edit

 
English Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia

Etymology edit

From Latin proboscis, from Ancient Greek προβοσκίς (proboskís, elephant's trunk) literally "means for taking food," from προ- (pro-, before) +‎ βόσκω (bóskō, to nourish, feed), from the Proto-Indo-European root *gʷeh₃- from which also comes βοτάνη (botánē, grass, fodder).

Pronunciation edit

  • IPA(key): /pɹə(ʊ)ˈbɒs(k)ɪs/
  • (file)

Noun edit

proboscis (plural proboscises or proboscides)

  1. (anatomy) An elongated tube from the head or connected to the mouth, of an animal.
    1. (entomology, malacology) The tubular feeding and sucking organ of certain invertebrates like insects, worms and molluscs.
      • 2012, Brian Wiegmann, The Evolutionary Biology of Flies[1], page 225:
        Unlike the proboscides of Lower brachyceran lineages, which are continuous with the head capsule and tend to dangle (Matsuda 1965), the proboscides of most cyclorrhaphan species are suspended by a membranous region and divided into three functional parts: the basiproboscis (rostrum), medioproboscis (haustellum), and distiproboscis (labellum), each of which is defined by internal muscles but also shares muscles with the other regions (Graham-Smith 1930; Lall and Davies 1971).
    2. The trunk of an elephant.
  2. (informal, mildly humorous) A large or lengthy human nose.

Derived terms edit

Translations edit

Latin edit

Etymology edit

From Ancient Greek προβοσκίς (proboskís).

Noun edit

proboscis f (genitive proboscidis); third declension

  1. proboscis
  2. snout
  3. trunk of an elephant

Declension edit

Third-declension noun.

Case Singular Plural
Nominative proboscis proboscidēs
Genitive proboscidis proboscidum
Dative proboscidī proboscidibus
Accusative proboscidem proboscidēs
Ablative proboscide proboscidibus
Vocative proboscis proboscidēs

Descendants edit

  • English: proboscis
  • Italian: proboscide
  • Portuguese: probóscide
  • Spanish: probóscide