Link Centre Dictionary

proboscis

pro·bos·cis

UK/pɹə(ʊ)ˈbɒs(k)ɪs/ US/pɹoʊˈbɑs(k)ɪs/ uncommon informal

noun

1.

the human nose (especially when it is large)

2.

a long flexible snout as of an elephant

Synonyms

Origin

From Latin proboscis, from Ancient Greek προβοσκίς (proboskís, “elephant's trunk”) literally "means for taking food," from προ- (pro-, “before”) + βόσκω (bóskō, “to nourish, feed”), from the Proto-Indo-European root *gʷeh₃- from which also comes βοτάνη (botánē, “grass, fodder”).

Phrases

  • proboscis monkey
  • proboscis worm

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.