colon

B2 Topic:Describing Qualities

US /ˈkoʊ.lən/ UK /ˈkəʊ.lən/ See IPA manual

Freq #13557

Meanings

1

noun
The punctuation mark ( : ), used before a list, example, or explanation.

Use a colon to introduce the items in your list.
2

noun
The main part of the large intestine, where the body absorbs water from waste.

The doctor scheduled a test to check his colon.

Thesaurus

Word family

Forms colons

Derived forms colon-pointdicolonsemicolontricolon

Related forms apostrophe brace bracket comma dash ellipsis guillemet hyphen interpunctinterrobangperiod semicolon

Etymology

From Latin cōlon (“a member of a verse of poem”), from Ancient Greek κῶλον (kôlon, “a member, limb, clause, part of a verse”).

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# colon

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B2
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈkoʊ.lən/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈkəʊ.lən/
**Frequency rank:** 13557

## Meanings
1. The punctuation mark ( : ), used before a list, example, or explanation.
2. The main part of the large intestine, where the body absorbs water from waste.

## Examples
- Use a colon to introduce the items in your list.
- The doctor scheduled a test to check his colon.

## Derived Forms
- colon-point
- dicolon
- semicolon
- tricolon

## Related Forms
- apostrophe
- brace
- bracket
- comma
- dash
- ellipsis
- guillemet
- hyphen
- interpunct
- interrobang
- period
- semicolon

## Etymology
From Latin cōlon (“a member of a verse of poem”), from Ancient Greek κῶλον (kôlon, “a member, limb, clause, part of a verse”).

## AI Etymology
colon is a noun. It is from Latin cōlon (“a member of a verse of poem”), from Ancient Greek κῶλον (kôlon, “a member, limb, clause, part of a verse”). Current senses include the punctuation mark ( : ), used before a list, example, or explanation and the main part of the large intestine, where the body absorbs water from waste. Derived forms include colon-point, dicolon, semicolon, and tricolon. Related words include apostrophe, brace, bracket, and comma.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities

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colon

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