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octopus

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Octopus

Main Entry:: oc·to·pus
Pronunciation:: \ˈäk-tə-pəs, -ˌpu̇s\
Function:: noun
Inflected Form(s):: plural oc·to·pus·es or oc·to·pi \-ˌpī\
Etymology:: New Latin Octopod-, Octopus, from Greek oktōpous
Date:: 1758

1: any of a genus (Octopus) of cephalopod mollusks that have eight muscular arms equipped with two rows of suckers ; broadly : any octopod excepting the paper nautilus2: something that resembles an octopus especially in having many centrally directed branches

[octopus illustration]

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