Polyposis

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A medical condition in which many small growths called polyps form on the inner lining of the bowel, especially the colon
2. The development of numerous polyps, which are benign tissue projections, on a mucous membrane such as the intestinal wall
3. A hereditary or acquired disorder characterized by the growth of large numbers of polyps, often raising the risk of cancer

Etymology: Polyposis is a medical term built from "polyp" and the suffix "-osis." The polyp part goes back to ancient Greek "polypous," literally "many-footed," a name for the octopus, from "polys" (many) and "pous" (foot). Medieval and early modern physicians borrowed the word through Latin "polypus" and applied it to growths that were thought to hang from the body like tentacles, so a fleshy lump on a mucous membrane was named after a sea creature. The suffix has its own history. Greek "-ōsis" denoted a condition or a process, as in "neurosis" or "tuberculosis," and New Latin scientists used it to name diseased states. "Polyposis" therefore describes the state of having many polyps, and the word is a modern coinage from classical parts rather than something the ancient Greeks used.