siphon

English

Alternative forms

Etymology

From Middle French siphon, from Old French sifon, from Latin sipho, from Ancient Greek σίφων (síphōn, pipe, tube), of uncertain origin; possibly related to Latin tibia (pipe, flute of bone), reflecting a hypothetical late Proto-Indo-European *twi-, *twibh (hollow) root, and the irregular forms suggest a non-Indo-European loan source.

Pronunciation

  • Rhymes: -aɪfən
  • IPA(key): /ˈsaɪfən/

Noun

siphon (plural siphons)

  1. A bent pipe or tube with one end lower than the other, in which hydrostatic pressure exerted due to the force of gravity moves liquid from one reservoir to another.
  2. A soda siphon.
  3. (biology) A tubelike organ found in animals or elongated cell found in plants.

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

siphon (third-person singular simple present siphons, present participle siphoning, simple past and past participle siphoned)

  1. (transitive) To transfer (liquid) by means of a siphon.
    He used a rubber tube to siphon petrol from the car's fuel tank.
  2. (transitive, figuratively) To steal or skim off in small amounts; to embezzle.

Translations

See also

References

  • Roberts, Edward A. (2014) A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the Spanish Language with Families of Words based on Indo-European Roots, Xlibris Corporation, →ISBN

Anagrams


French

Etymology

Via Latin sipho from Ancient Greek σίφων (síphōn, pipe, tube), but of unknown ultimate origin.

Pronunciation

  • (file)

Noun

siphon m (plural siphons)

  1. siphon

Derived terms

Further reading

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