: a tube bent to form two legs of unequal length by which a liquid can be transferred to a lower level over an intermediate elevation by the pressure of the atmosphere in forcing the liquid up the shorter branch of the tube immersed in it while the excess of weight of the liquid in the longer branch when once filled causes a continuous flow
b
usually syphon: a bottle for holding aerated water that is driven out through a bent tube in its neck by the pressure of the gas when a valve in the tube is opened
2
: any of various tubular organs in animals and especially mollusks or arthropods that are used for drawing in or ejecting fluids
Verb
The water needs to be siphoned from the pool.
She illegally siphoned money out of other people's bank accounts.
Funds were siphoned from the schools to build a new stadium.
The large chain stores are siphoning profits from the small local stores.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Photo by Cloe Poisson/Special to the Courant Allen Flores, a barista at Victus Coffee, makes coffee using a coffee siphon at the coffee shop on Main St. in Hartford on Tuesday, April 3, 2024.—Jessica Hill, Hartford Courant, 30 Apr. 2024 Tens of thousands of these siphons are already wedged alongside crude-oil pipelines in the Arctic.—Ross Andersen, The Atlantic, 12 June 2024
Verb
In a statement, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams said the tech Marchenko siphoned to Russia could be used to fashion rifle scopes, night-vision goggles, thermal optics and other sensitive weapons systems.—Molly Crane-Newman, New York Daily News, 14 June 2024 In Goldman's view, a broader approach should also be used to stop governments from siphoning user data.—Jon Brodkin, Ars Technica, 26 Apr. 2024 See all Example Sentences for siphon
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'siphon.' 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
Noun
French siphon, from Latin siphon-, sipho tube, pipe, siphon, from Greek siphōn
: a bent tube through which a liquid can be drawn by means of air pressure up and over the edge of one container and into another container at a lower level
2
: any of various tube-shaped organs in animals and especially mollusks that are used to draw in or pass off fluids
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