bowel

American  

[bou-uhl, boul] / ˈbaʊ əl, baʊl /

noun

1. Anatomy.

   1. Usually bowels. the intestine.

   2. a part of the intestine.

2. bowels,

   1. the inward or interior parts.

      the bowels of the earth.

   2. Archaic.  feelings of pity or compassion.

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verb (used with object)

boweled, boweling bowelled, bowelling

1. to disembowel.

bowel British  

/ ˈbaʊəl /

noun

1. an intestine, esp the large intestine in man

2. (plural) innards; entrails

3. (plural) the deep or innermost part (esp in the phrase the bowels of the earth )

4. archaic  (plural) the emotions, esp of pity or sympathy

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bowel Scientific  

/ bou′əl /

1. The intestine.

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Other Word Forms

• bowelless adjective

Etymology

Origin of bowel

1250–1300; Middle English b ( o ) uel < Old French < Latin botellus little sausage ( bot ( ulus ) sausage + -ellus -elle )

Example Sentences

Examples include women being invited for a mammogram to look for breast cancer or the at-home bowel cancer test that is posted to your home every two years over the age of 50.

From BBC

During immune escape, bowel cancer cells disrupt the genes that normally allow the body's immune defenses to recognize them as a threat.

From Science Daily

In the bowels of a building at a London university, a curious professor opens a turquoise door that reads “Map Room.”

From The Wall Street Journal

"These appeared to be in separate parts of bowel adhered together due to magnetic forces," they said.

From Barron's

When combined with breast, bowel and cervical screening it increased the number of cancers detected overall seven-fold.

From BBC

Related Words

• decimate
• empty
• eviscerate
• loot
• ransack
• ravage