tentacle

[ten-tuh-kuhl]

noun

1. Zoology.,  any of various slender, flexible processes or appendages in animals, especially invertebrates, that serve as organs of touch, prehension, etc.; feeler.

2. Botany.,  a sensitive filament or process, as one of the glandular hairs of the sundew.

tentacle

/ tɛnˈtækjʊlə, tɛnˈtækjʊˌlɔɪd, ˈtɛntəkəl /

noun

1. any of various elongated flexible organs that occur near the mouth in many invertebrates and are used for feeding, grasping, etc

2. any of the hairs on the leaf of an insectivorous plant that are used to capture prey

3. something resembling a tentacle, esp in its ability to reach out or grasp

tentacle

1. A narrow, flexible, unjointed part extending from the body of certain animals, such as an octopus, jellyfish, or sea anemone. Tentacles are used for feeling, grasping, or moving.

Other Word Forms

• tentacular adjective
• tentaclelike adjective
• tentaculoid adjective
• intertentacular adjective
• subtentacular adjective
• tentacle-like adjective
• tentacled adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of tentacle¹

1755–65; < New Latin tentāculum, equivalent to Latin tentā ( re ) (variant of temptāre to feel, probe) + -culum -cule ²

Word History and Origins

Origin of tentacle¹

C18: from New Latin tentāculum, from Latin tentāre, variant of temptāre to feel

Example Sentences

Some claim he has tentacles emerging from his back, and most say he wears dark clothes and has a pale face.

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AIG is one of the world’s largest insurers, with tentacles in close to 200 countries and more than 25,000 employees.

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The tentacles of her extended family reach into high levels of the military and other public offices.

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Predictably, those vessels break open so his grey flesh can supernaturally merge into a foul lump of distorted features and tentacles, binding Lilly while a creepy voice asks, “Got a kiss for daddy?”

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Fins flapping, tentacles trailing behind them, their long bodies were flashing bright red in a way that meant, “Swim for your lives!”

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