ˈpälə̇p noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle French polype octopus, nasal tumor, from Latin polypus, from Greek polypous, literally, many-footed, from poly- + pous foot — more at foot
1.
a. also pol·ype “ archaic : an animal (as an octopus, cuttlefish, or squid) having numerous feet or tentacles
b. : a typical coelenterate individual with a hollow tubular body having outer ectoderm separated from inner endoderm by mesogloea, terminating anteriorly in a central mouth surrounded by tentacles, and being posteriorly closed and attached to the substrate (as in Hydra ) or more or less directly continuous with other individuals of a compound animal (as in Obelia or most corals) : zooid
2.
[so called from the ramifications resembling the tentacles of an octopus]
a. : a projecting mass of swollen and hypertrophied mucous membrane (as in the nasal cavity) caused by chronic inflammation
b. : a pedunculated tumor (as of the lower intestine) that often undergoes malignant change