Syrinx

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈsɪrɪŋks/

Origin

From Latin syrinx, from Ancient Greek σῦριγξ (sŷrinx, "pipe, tube, channel, fistula").

Full definition of syrinx

Noun

1. A set of pan-pipes.
• 1982, John Fowles, Mantissa:Actually, to cut a long story short, he began...well, playing with a rather different sort of pipe. Or syrinx, as we called it. He obviously thought he was alone.
• 2006, Thomas Pynchon, Against the Day, Vintage 2007, p. 247:Inside, somebody was playing a duet on syrinx and lyre.
2. A narrow channel cut in rock, especially in ancient Egyptian tombs.
3. (zoology) The voice organ in birds.
4. (medicine) A rare, fluid-filled neuroglial cavity within the spinal cord or in the brain stem

Related terms

• syringomyelia
• syringobulbia