Siphuncle
/ˈsɪf.ʌŋ.kəl/noun
A small tubular structure in a cephalopod shell that regulates buoyancy.
Did you know?The word comes from Latin scientific usage built on Greek roots for a “little tube,” and that same root family also gave English words connected to pipes, siphons, and flowing channels.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
σίφων (síphōn)
“tube, pipe, or siphon”
Latin
Latin
siphō
“tube or pipe, borrowed from Greek”
18th Century
New Latin
siphunculus
“little tube; diminutive scientific term”
19th Century
English
siphuncle
“the tubular organ of a cephalopod shell”
Modern English
English
siphuncle
“the tube in a chambered cephalopod shell used to control buoyancy”