1. A coelenterate, such as a hydra or coral, having a cylindrical body and an oral opening usually surrounded by tentacles.
2. A usually nonmalignant growth or tumor protruding from the mucous lining of an organ such as the nose, bladder, or intestine, often causing obstruction.

[Middle English polip, nasal tumor, from Old French polipe, from Latin pōlypus, cuttlefish, nasal tumor, from Greek polupous, poulupous : polu-, poly- + pous, foot.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.