phallus

noun

phal·lus ˈfa-ləs

plural phalli ˈfa-ˌlī

-ˌlē

or phalluses

: a symbol or representation of the penis

: penis

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web These included the pygophore, or genital capsule, a hardened cup that protects the internal genitalia and is lowered during mating to allow the inflated phallus to slide out. —

Kate Baggaley, Popular Science, 20 Jan. 2021 The surprisingly symmetrical 30-foot-long phallus, landscaped on the pristine emerald lawn across the prestigious Royal Crescent in Bath, England, is hard to miss. —

Yelena Moroz Alpert, House Beautiful, 7 May 2023 However, researchers have reinterpreted the artifact as a disembodied phallus and, by examining it closely, have outlined some of its most likely possible functions. —

Amarachi Orie, CNN, 20 Feb. 2023 Carved from ash wood, the phallus was unearthed at the Roman Vindolanda fort site near Hadrian’s Wall. —

Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 27 Feb. 2023 The phallus could have been slotted into a statue for passers-by to touch for good luck or to absorb its protection from back luck. —

Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 21 Feb. 2023 The same goes for the phallus—the erectile tissue goes deep into your body, and stimulating it with a vibrator can provide a new and exhilarating experience. —

Jaina Grey, WIRED, 9 Feb. 2023 Male turkeys have a rudimentary phallus in their cloacas located near the tail end of their digestive tract. —

Christie Wilcox, Discover Magazine, 23 Nov. 2017 One such fresco, located at the home’s entrance, features Priapus, the Greek god of fertility, with a large phallus balancing on a scale along with a bag of money. —

Ella Feldman, Smithsonian Magazine, 10 Jan. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'phallus.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Latin, borrowed from Greek phallós "penis, representation of the penis," of uncertain origin

Note: The Greek word has generally been taken as an outcome of the western Indo-European etymon *b^hel-, implicated in a wide range of names for things swollen or inflated, especially in Germanic (compare ball entry 1, bowl entry 1). Chantraine (Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue grecque) suggests descent from *b^hl̥-nó-, but then hesitates on the grounds that the word does not show the dialectal variation usual with resolution of *-ln-, there being no correspondent with a lengthened vowel *phālo- (compare Attic-Ionian stḗlē "pillar, stele," Lesbian and Thessalian stallā, from *stálnā). Chantraine then adduces ballíon "phallus," a word used by Herodotus that he suggests was borrowed from "Thraco-Phrygian" (thraco-phrygien), and reconstructs for phallós a form *b^hol-i̯o-, a thematic derivative of *b^hol-i-, in heteroclitic alteration with *b^hol-(e)n-. G. Kroonen (Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic, under *bul(l)an- "bull") proffers the same Indo-European reconstruction *b^hl̥-no-. However, R. Beekes (Etymological Dictionary of Greek) follows E. Furnée (Die wichtigsten konsonantischen Erscheinungen des Vorgriechischen, p. 172), who considers features of this etymon (a variant with b, in the diminutive ballíon; the variant with single l phalēt-, phalês, as well as the suffix -ēt-) as evidence of a pre-Greek substratal word. Furnée also points to the close connection of phallós with the cult of Dionysus, which likely has pre-Greek roots.