colon

noun

(anatomy) Part of the large intestine; the final segment of the digestive system, after (distal to) the ileum and before (proximal to) the rectum. (Because the colon is the largest part of the large intestine (constituting most of it), it is often treated as synonymous therewith in broad or casual usage.)

The punctuation mark ⟨:⟩.

A European colonial settler, especially in a French colony.

(rhetoric) A rhetorical figure consisting of a clause which is grammatically, but not logically, complete.

(palaeography) A clause or group of clauses written as a line, or taken as a standard of measure in ancient manuscripts or texts.

A surname.

(rare) The triangular colon (especially in context of not being able to type the actual triangular colon).

(obsolete) A husbandman.

Roots

koloncolon- · Greek · limb, clause

Synonyms for colon

intestinen rectumn duodenumn hindgutn cecumn jejunumn stomachn semicolonn foregut livern

Synonyms & related words for colon

Find synonyms, related words, and the definition of colon — including intestine, rectum, duodenum, hindgut, cecum, jejunum. Dendril is a free visual thesaurus that shows them on an interactive map where stronger matches sit closer to the center — no signup, no ads.

Words related to colon

Explore words related to colon — words associated with it, words that go with it, and its nearest matches in meaning. Related words include colotomy, colonic, bowel, intestinally, intestinal, colectomy, colitis, colonoscopy. Click any word to make it the center of the map and keep exploring the web of connections.

Synonyms for colon

Common synonyms for colon include intestine, rectum, duodenum, hindgut, cecum, jejunum, stomach, semicolon — words that share a close meaning. Hover or tap any word on the map for its definition and part of speech.

Where does colon come from?

The word colon breaks down into one root of Greek origin: the root colon-, from Greek kolon (“limb, clause”). Explore each root to see other English words built from the same source.