scolex

American  

[skoh-leks] / ˈskoʊ lɛks /

noun

Zoology.

plural

scoleces, scolices

1. the anterior, headlike segment of a tapeworm, having suckers, hooks, or the like, for attachment.

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scolex British  

/ ˈskəʊlɛks /

noun

1. the headlike part of a tapeworm, bearing hooks and suckers by which the animal is attached to the tissues of its host

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Etymology

Origin of scolex

First recorded in 1850–55, scolex is from the Greek word skṓlēx worm

Example Sentences

A worm latches on to the inside of the intestine with its scolex, which is not a mouth but a gripping tool, and absorbs nutrients through the segments of its body.

From Washington Post • Mar. 19, 2016

Humans who consume raw or undercooked infected meat become infected when the tapeworm attaches itself to the intestinal wall via suckers or hooks on the scolex, or head.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015

Tapeworms attach themselves to the intestine via a hook-like structure called the scolex.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015

Tapeworms live in the intestinal tract of the primary host and remain fixed using a sucker on the anterior end, or scolex, of the tapeworm body.

From Textbooks • Apr. 25, 2013

When meat, improperly cooked and containing "measles," is eaten, the cyst is dissolved in the human stomach and the free scolex or head attaches itself to the intestinal mucous membrane and grows into a tapeworm.

From Mother's Remedies Over One Thousand Tried and Tested Remedies from Mothers of the United States and Canada by Ritter, Thomas Jefferson