cloaca C2+ Topic:General Vocabulary US /kloʊˈeɪkə/ UK /kləʊˈeɪkə/ See IPA manual Meanings 1 noun a common cavity for excretory and reproductive ducts in many vertebrates In birds, waste and eggs both pass through the cloaca. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 noun · a common cavity for... sewerdrainvent Word family Forms cloacal Derived forms cloacal Etymology AI details From Latin cloāca 'sewer, drain', from cluere 'to cleanse', from Proto-Indo-European *ḱlew- 'to wash, clean'. cloāca Latin cluere Latin *ḱlew- Proto-Indo-European View etymology graph -> Topics General Vocabulary External links Google Images Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary # cloaca **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** noun **IPA (US):** /kloʊˈeɪkə/ **IPA (UK):** /kləʊˈeɪkə/ ## Meanings 1. a common cavity for excretory and reproductive ducts in many vertebrates ## Examples - In birds, waste and eggs both pass through the cloaca. ## Synonyms - sewer - drain - vent ## Derived Forms - cloacal ## Roots and Affixes - Root: cloāca - Root: cluere - Root: *ḱlew- ## Etymology From Latin cloāca 'sewer, drain', from cluere 'to cleanse', from Proto-Indo-European *ḱlew- 'to wash, clean'. ## AI Etymology Cloaca is a noun meaning "a common cavity for excretory and reproductive ducts in many vertebrates". Historically, it is from Latin cloāca 'sewer, drain', from cluere 'to cleanse', from Proto-Indo-European *ḱlew- 'to wash, clean'. The historical chain links Latin cloāca, Latin cluere, and Proto-Indo-European *ḱlew-. A close English family member is cloacal. This keeps the modern noun sense tied to the older forms and language sequence behind it. ## Topics - General Vocabulary markdown