A small sucker-like or tubular mouth part or feeding apparatus found on parasitic organisms such as leeches, tapeworms, or certain arthropods, used for attaching to and drawing from a host.
From Latin 'haustellum,' literally meaning 'small pipe for drinking,' diminutive form of 'haustus' (a drawing or drinking). Technical term adopted into biological and parasitological vocabulary.
The name 'haustellum' literally means 'drinking straw' in Latin—medieval scientists looked at tapeworm mouths and thought they looked like tiny straws, so they named them accordingly, and the term stuck for 500 years.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.