Fistula

//ˈfɪs.tjə.lə// noun

noun ·Moderate ·College level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    An abnormal connection or passageway between organs or vessels that normally do not connect.

    "communicating fistula"

  2. 2
    an abnormal passage leading from a suppurating cavity to the body surface wordnet
  3. 3
    A tube, a pipe, or a hole. rare
  4. 4
    a chronic inflammation of the withers of a horse wordnet
  5. 5
    The tube through which the wine of the Eucharist was once sucked from the chalice in certain ceremonies (such as papal Masses). historical

Synonyms

All synonyms
abscessanatomyapertureblebblisterboil

Example

More examples

"Obstetric fistula is a hole between the vagina and rectum or bladder that is caused by prolonged obstructed labor, leaving a woman incontinent; unable to control the flow of her urine or her feces."

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Latin fistula (“pipe, ulcer, catheter”). Doublet of fester.

Related phrases

anal fistulaarteriovenous fistulafistula-in-anopancreatic fistulavesicovaginal fistula

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