What does "siphon" mean?
A bent pipe or tube with one end lower than the other, in which hydrostatic pressure exerted due to the force of gravity moves liquid from one reservoir to another.
Siphon
/ˈsaɪfən/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A bent pipe or tube with one end lower than the other, in which hydrostatic pressure exerted due to the force of gravity moves liquid from one reservoir to another.
- Grammar: siphon is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: adjutage, aspirate, aspirator, bleed.
- Useful contrasts: deposit, fill, invest.
- Usage evidence: Everyday, politicians siphon money from tax-payers.
How to use "siphon"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "siphon" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "siphon" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "siphon" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "siphon" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "siphon" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "adjutage" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "siphon", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A bent pipe or tube with one end lower than the other, in which hydrostatic pressure exerted due to the force of gravity moves liquid from one reservoir to another.
"The asserted fact that free hydrochloric acid is absent from the fluid removed by a siphon in cases of cancer of the stomach has been lately much discussed in Germany, and Dr Van der Welden, of Strassburg, introduced an alcoholic solution of tropæolin as a test with this object."
- 2 a tubular organ in an aquatic animal (especially in mollusks) through which water can be taken in or expelled wordnet
- 3 A soda siphon.
- 4 a tube running from the liquid in a vessel to a lower level outside the vessel so that gravity forces the liquid through the tube wordnet
- 5 A tubelike organ found in animals or elongated cell found in plants.
"As a result, although corbinas commonly utilize mollusks, they are limited to the siphons, foot, or other soft parts that either extend from the shell or can be picked from it."
Verb
- 1 To transfer (liquid) by means of a siphon. transitive
"He used a rubber tube to siphon petrol from the car's fuel tank."
- 2 move a liquid from one container into another by means of a siphon or a siphoning action wordnet
- 3 To transfer directly. broadly, transitive
"Today's teenagers are siphoning dangerous levels of membrane-damaging noise directly into their eardrums, with long-term effects that otologists prophesy will be disastrous for their hearing and lead to an epidemic of middle-aged deafness in the next thirty years."
- 4 convey, draw off, or empty by or as if by a siphon wordnet
- 5 To steal or skim off something, such as money, in small amounts; to embezzle. figuratively, often, transitive
"In Juchipila power to the whole community of thirty thousand evaporated as the supraheavy grid buried alongside the little mountain cantina siphoned energy from the entire west-central portion of the Namerican national power net."
Example
"Everyday, politicians siphon money from tax-payers."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "siphon"?
Common synonyms include: adjutage, aspirate, aspirator, bleed, bleed, broach.
How do you use "siphon" in a sentence?
Everyday, politicians siphon money from tax-payers.
How do you pronounce "siphon"?
Pronounced /ˈsaɪfən/.
Etymology
From Middle French siphon, from Old French sifon, from Latin sipho, from Ancient Greek σίφων (síphōn, “pipe, tube”), of uncertain origin; possibly related to Latin tibia (“pipe, flute of bone”), with the irregular forms suggesting a non-Indo-European loan source, perhaps of the shape *twi-, *twibh.