feces

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

See also: fèces

English

English Wikipedia has an article on:
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English Wikipedia has an article on:
Wikipedia

Alternative forms

Etymology

From Latin faecēs, nominative plural of faex (residue, dregs), further origin unknown; possibly borrowed from a substrate language.

Pronunciation

Noun

feces pl (plural only) (Canada, US)

  1. Digested waste material (typically solid or semi-solid) discharged from a human or other mammal's stomach to the intestines; excrement.
    • 2011 June 21, Kay E. Holekamp, “Why Study Hyenas?”, in The New York Times:
      We are also extracting DNA, both from blood collected during immobilizations and from hyena feces.

Usage notes

  • This word can be used with plural verbs ("feces have a strong smell") or singular ones ("feces has a strong smell"). Use with plural verbs is more common, especially in Britain, and is the only use recognized by some dictionaries,[1] while others recognize both plural and singular use.[2]
  • A singular form faex is rarely used, in some academic contexts, particularly when the spelling faeces is used for the plural.

Synonyms

Derived terms

Translations

References

  1. feces”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.
  2. feces” in TheFreeDictionary.com, Huntingdon Valley, Pa.: Farlex, Inc., 2003–2025.

Latin

Spanish

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