POLYP
What does "POLYP" mean?
A small growth on a body surface, or a sedentary tube-shaped sea animal like a coral or anemone.
Meanings
- A small, usually benign growth protruding from a mucous membrane, such as in the nose or colon. The doctor removed a polyp during the routine colonoscopy. technical
- A tube- or sac-shaped cnidarian with a mouth and tentacles at the top, attached at the base (e.g. coral, hydra, sea anemone). Each coral reef is built by millions of tiny polyps. technical
Did you know?
- 'Polyp' literally means 'many-footed' in Greek - it was the original Greek word for the octopus, only later borrowed for tentacled growths.
- Every coral reef, including the Great Barrier Reef, is built by tiny soft-bodied animals called polyps, each often just millimetres wide, stacking stone skeletons over millennia.
Word origin
From Latin 'polypus', from Greek 'polypous' (literally 'many-footed'), from 'poly-' (many) + 'pous' (foot) - originally a name for the octopus, later for tentacled growths and animals.
Remember it
POLYP = POLY (many) + P; picture many tiny tentacled feet - the 'many-footed' sea creature inside the word.
A little poem
A speck with a mouth-
stacked a million summers high,
now a wall of stone.
haiku
Wordplay
- Why did the coral polyp never feel lonely? It had millions of identical feet around it - it was, after all, many-footed.
What it teaches
The smallest builder leaves the largest wall: reefs prove that tiny, patient work can outlast the sea itself.
Quick facts
What does POLYP mean?
A small growth on a body surface, or a sedentary tube-shaped sea animal like a coral or anemone.
Is POLYP a valid word?
Yes — POLYP is one of the answer words in Wordul, the daily word game.
How many letters is POLYP?
POLYP has 5 letters and 2 syllables.
Where does POLYP come from?
From Latin 'polypus', from Greek 'polypous' (literally 'many-footed'), from 'poly-' (many) + 'pous' (foot) - originally a name for the octopus, later for tentacled growths and animals.
What can POLYP teach us?
The smallest builder leaves the largest wall: reefs prove that tiny, patient work can outlast the sea itself.
How players do
Be the first to solve it.