noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1. 1
   A conical structure with a small terminal opening, at the posterior end of an ant’s gaster through which it sprays formic acid and associated hydrocarbons, collectively comprising the venom. This structure is unique to, but characteristic of all members of the ant subfamily Formicinae. rare

Etymology

From acid + -o- + pore.

Related phrases

formic acid

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.