siphon

American  

[sahy-fuhn] / ˈsaɪ fən /

Or syphon

noun

• siphons
  plural

1. a tube or conduit bent into legs of unequal length, for use in drawing a liquid from one container into another on a lower level by placing the shorter leg into the container above and the longer leg into the one below, the liquid being forced up the shorter leg and into the longer one by the pressure of the atmosphere.

2. siphon bottle.

3. a projecting tubular part of some animals, especially certain mollusks, through which liquid enters or leaves the body.

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verb (used with or without object)

• siphons,
  present (3rd person singular)
• siphoned,
  past participle,  past
• siphoning
  present participle

1. to convey, draw, or pass through or as if through a siphon (sometimes followed by off ).

   to siphon water; to siphon off profits into a secret bank account.

siphon British  

/ saɪˈfɒnɪk, ˈsaɪfən /

noun

1. a tube placed with one end at a certain level in a vessel of liquid and the other end outside the vessel below this level, so that liquid pressure forces the liquid through the tube and out of the vessel by gravity

2. See soda siphon

3. zoology any of various tubular organs in different aquatic animals, such as molluscs and elasmobranch fishes, through which a fluid, esp water, passes

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verb

1. (often foll by off) to pass or draw off through or as if through a siphon

siphon Scientific  

/ sī′fən /

1. A pipe or tube in the form of an upside-down U, filled with liquid and arranged so that the pressure of the atmosphere forces liquid to flow upward from a container through the tube, over a barrier, and into a lower container.

2. A tubular animal part, as of a clam, through which water is taken in or expelled.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• siphonage
  noun
• pseudosiphonal
  adjective
• pseudosiphonic
  adjective
• siphonal
  adjective
• siphonic
  adjective
• siphonless
  adjective
• siphonlike
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• siphons
  plural

Participles

• siphoning
  present
• siphoned
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• siphon
  simple
• siphons
  simple
• have siphoned
  perfect
• has siphoned
  perfect
• am siphoning
  progressive
• are siphoning
  progressive
• is siphoning
  progressive
• have been siphoning
  perfect progressive
• has been siphoning
  perfect progressive

Past

• siphoned
  simple
• had siphoned
  perfect
• was siphoning
  progressive
• were siphoning
  progressive
• had been siphoning
  perfect progressive

Future

• will siphon
  simple
• will have siphoned
  perfect
• will be siphoning
  progressive
• will have been siphoning
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of siphon

1650–60; < Latin sīphōn- (stem of sīphō ) < Greek síphōn, sī́phōn pipe, tube

Explanation

A siphon is a device used to move liquid from one container to the other. If you're giving your goldfish a magnificent new bowl, you can use a siphon to move the water from the old one to the new. A siphon is a tube running from one container to another that uses gravity to cause liquid to flow. The key is that the container with the liquid has to be at a higher level than the container you’re moving the liquid to. You have to use force to start the initial flow, but after that gravity takes over. We also use siphon as a verb, for the process of emptying. An endless meeting might siphon off all your energy.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

siphon siphons siphoned siphoning

A digital bill of rights would be a major part of that by boosting privacy and protecting the level of data that corporations can siphon up about ordinary people.

From Salon ● Aug. 17, 2026

Yet this immense spending has started to siphon off most of these companies’ free cash flow, spooking investors who are worried about the return on investment.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 29, 2026

Banks have increasingly braced for the threat that stablecoins become widely adopted, especially if crypto firms are able to siphon deposits from banks.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 4, 2026

The judge described the diversion of public funds as a gross abuse of public trust and said proxy companies and associates were used to siphon money from the projects.

From BBC ● May 20, 2026

Meanwhile, everyone has an opinion on why the siphon isn’t working—but our knowledge of this lost art is limited to fifth-grade science labs and movies.

From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman

This includes the Revolutionary Guard, which siphons about half the revenue.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 14, 2026

DWR has also initiated a program to provide more pumps and siphons for local agencies that have maximized their ability to divert water for recharge, including the Fresno Irrigation District, Nemeth said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 26, 2023

But it is different from the previously favoured scenario, in which a white dwarf siphons material from a companion.

From Scientific American ● Feb. 1, 2023

That’s because there’s minimal local investment by the company, which siphons readership and potential subscribers away from local outlets providing foundational local coverage.

From Seattle Times ● Aug. 10, 2022

The siphons at the ends of their necks glistened.

From "Snow Falling on Cedars: A Novel" by David Guterson

The candidate is linked to — but not accused of any wrongdoing in — a corruption case involving two former advisors and a lobbyist who siphoned $225,000 money from one of Becerra’s campaign accounts.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026

The trustee alleged that Calce and other insiders had improperly siphoned away cash and other assets.

From Salon ● Jun. 11, 2026

“It kind of siphoned all of that pent-up, closeted stuff that you hold back, that you couldn’t freely express,” she said.

From Slate ● May 4, 2026

Citing a government estimate, they warned senators that some $6.6 trillion in deposits could be at risk of being siphoned out of the traditional financial system.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 30, 2026

With water siphoned off from the Los Angeles-bound aqueduct, a large farm was under cultivation just outside the camp, providing the mess halls with lettuce, corn, tomatoes, eggplant, string beans, horseradish, and cucumbers.

From "Farewell to Manzanar" by Jeanne Houston

Both OpenAI and Anthropic have accused Chinese companies of siphoning proprietary data to create their own AIs by this process.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026

Higher Treasury yields provide competition, siphoning income-hungry investors away capital that could support prices.

From Barron's ● May 15, 2026

To advocates and education unions, such maneuvers amounted to improper or possibly illegal siphoning — and that’s one detail they were watching for Thursday.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 14, 2026

Arbitration has also become a massive phenomenon, siphoning countless cases off from the courts into a shadowy, opaque system that nobody can ever truly fully observe.

From Slate ● Apr. 27, 2026

Winter had once again clapped itself over Chicago, siphoning the warmth from the air and the blue from the sky.

From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama