colon

plural colons · plural uncommon cola

1. The punctuation mark ⟨:⟩.

   A colon tells the reader that what follows is closely related to the preceding clause.

   2005, William Strunk Jr., E.B. White, The Elements of Style, Penguin Press, page 15

   Synonyms: colon-point

2. rareThe triangular colon (especially in context of not being able to type the actual triangular colon).
3. rhetoricA rhetorical figure consisting of a clause which is grammatically, but not logically, complete.
4. biologyA clause or group of clauses written as a line, or taken as a standard of measure in ancient manuscripts or texts.

plural colons · plural cola · plural coli

1. anatomyPart of the large intestine; the final segment of the digestive system, after (distal to) the ileum and before (proximal to) the rectum. (Because the colon is the largest part of the large intestine (constituting most of it), it is often treated as synonymous therewith in broad or casual usage.)

   Colorectal cancer refers to colon cancer, which starts in the colon, and rectal cancer, which starts in the rectum.

   2025 March 21, Katia Hetter, “Reduce your risk of colon and rectal cancer with these basic steps”, in CNN

plural colons · alternative colone

1. obsoleteA husbandman.
2. A European colonial settler, especially in a French colony.

   The reaction of the European colons, a mixture of shock and fear, was to demand further draconian measures and to suspend any suggestion of new reforms.

   1977, Alistair Horne, A Savage War of Peace, New York: Review Books, published 2006, page 28

1. A surname.