plural bowels
1
: the long tube in the body that helps digest food and carries solid waste out of the body
a disease of the bowel
—often plurala disease that affects the bowels
Note: To have a bowel movement or to move your bowels or (Brit) open your bowels is to pass solid waste from your body.
2
literary
: the deep inner parts of something
They dug deep into the bowels of the earth.
The engine room is down in the bowels of the ship.
Cite this Entry
“Bowel.” Merriam-Webster.com Simple Definition, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/simple/bowel. Accessed 20 Jun. 2026.
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