noun
- Zoology. any of various slender, flexible processes or appendages in animals, especially invertebrates, that serve as organs of touch, prehension, etc.; feeler.
- Botany. a sensitive filament or process, as one of the glandular hairs of the sundew.
noun
- any of various elongated flexible organs that occur near the mouth in many invertebrates and are used for feeding, grasping, etc
- any of the hairs on the leaf of an insectivorous plant that are used to capture prey
- something resembling a tentacle, esp in its ability to reach out or grasp
n.1762, from Modern Latin tentaculum “feeler,” from Latin tentare “to feel, try” (variant of temptare “to feel, try, test”) + -culum, diminutive suffix. n.
- An elongated, flexible, unsegmented extension, as one of those surrounding the mouth or oral cavity of the squid, used for feeling, grasping, or locomotion.
- A narrow, flexible, unjointed part extending from the body of certain animals, such as an octopus, jellyfish, or sea anemone. Tentacles are used for feeling, grasping, or moving.