Standard Lemma guide

osculum

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

A small opening or orifice.

One of the suckers on the head of a tapeworm.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: obsolete

Topics: biology, natural-sciences, zoology

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

A small opening or orifice.

The main opening in a sponge from which water is expelled.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: biology, natural-sciences, zoology

Examples

  • 2012, Sally P. Lees, April Hill, The Physiology and Molecular Biology of Sponge Tissues, Mikel A. Becerro, Maria J. Uriz, Manuel Maldonado, Xavier Turon (editors), Michael Lesser (series editor), Advances in Marine Biology 62: Advances in Sponge Science, Elsevier (Academic Press), page 30, Oscula are also thought to arise initially from a single porocyte (Weissenfels, 1980), but how they coordinate with other porocytes to form a larger osculum is still unclear.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Etymology tree Latin ōs Proto-Indo-European *-lós Proto-Indo-European *-elós Proto-Italic *-elos Proto-Italic *-kelos Latin -culum Latin ōsculumbor. English osculum Borrowed from Latin ōsculum (“little mouth”).

Across languages

Translations

12 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Finnish: hylkyaukko — main opening in a sponge
  • French: oscule — main opening in a sponge
  • German: Osculum — main opening in a sponge
  • Irish: óisín — main opening in a sponge
  • Italian: osculo — main opening in a sponge
  • Polish: oskulum — main opening in a sponge
  • Portuguese: ósculo — main opening in a sponge
  • Russian: оскулум (oskulum) — main opening in a sponge
  • Serbo-Croatian: оскулум — main opening in a sponge
  • Serbo-Croatian: oskulum — main opening in a sponge
  • Spanish: ósculo — main opening in a sponge
  • Ukrainian: оскулюм (oskuljum) — main opening in a sponge