proboscises
proboscises — 名詞
1. The long, flexible nose of an elephant, which the animal uses for breathing, pic
象鼻
大象的長鼻，用於呼吸和取物
The long, flexible nose of an elephant, which the animal uses for breathing, picking up objects and food, making sounds, and spraying water.
Emma watched the elephant curl its proboscis around leaves and lift them to its mouth.
Emma 看著大象將象鼻捲起樹葉，送到嘴邊。
curl around + lift to mouth
The zookeeper explained that an elephant's proboscis contains more than forty thousand individual muscles.
動物園管理員解釋說，大象的象鼻含有超過四萬條肌肉。
contains more than forty thousand muscles
Chidi stayed very still as the young elephant's proboscis gently touched his outstretched palm.
Chidi 一動不動地站著，小象的象鼻輕輕觸碰他伸出的手掌。
The elephant used its proboscis to spray water across its dusty back.
大象用象鼻將水噴灑在滿是灰塵的背上。
A baby elephant wrapped its proboscis around Benjamin's arm with surprising strength.
一頭小象用驚人的力氣把象鼻纏繞在 Benjamin 的手臂上。
- trunk
The everyday, non-technical term for an elephant's nose; 'proboscis' is more formal or biological.
文法句型
[possessive] proboscis
the elephant's proboscis
用法筆記
By far the most common sense of 'proboscis' for general audiences. The plural form 'proboscises' is used in everyday English, while 'probosces' follows the original Latin pattern and appears mainly in scientific writing.
常見錯誤
2. A person's nose, especially when it is unusually large or long — used humorously
大鼻子
（幽默用法）人的大鼻子
A person's nose, especially when it is unusually large or long — used humorously or in formal writing to avoid saying 'nose' directly.
The old professor had a curved proboscis that he peered over when making a point.
那位老教授長著一隻彎曲的大鼻子，說要點時總會從鼻樑上方看人。
humorous register: 'great curved proboscis'
Rafael's proboscis was so long he needed glasses that sat further from his face.
Rafael 的鼻子太大，必須戴離臉遠一點的特殊眼鏡。
The cartoonist gave every politician an enormous proboscis to make them look silly and untrustworthy.
那位漫畫家給每位政治人物都畫上一個巨大的鼻子，讓他們看起來既滑稽又不可信。
"Mind your own business," said Adina, wrinkling her proboscis at the reporter by the gate.
Adina 皺著鼻子對門口的記者說：「管好你自己的事吧。」
文法句型
[possessive] proboscis
用法筆記
Deliberately playful or mock-formal. This sense carries a teasing tone and is rarely used in neutral description. Distinguish from sense 1 (elephant's trunk) — context makes the referent clear: a human subject and the absence of any elephant setting indicate sense 2.
常見錯誤
3. A long, tube-shaped mouth part of certain animals without backbones, such as but
管狀口器
無脊椎動物的吸管狀口部器官
A long, tube-shaped mouth part of certain animals without backbones, such as butterflies and moths, that they use for drinking liquids like nectar from flowers.
The butterfly unrolled its proboscis and dipped it into a flower to drink the nectar.
蝴蝶展開管狀口器，伸入花朵中吸食花蜜。
unrolled + dipped into flower
Under the microscope, the moth's proboscis coiled like a spring when not in use.
在顯微鏡下，蛾的管狀口器在不用時像彈簧一樣捲起。
coiled tightly like a spring when not in use
A hummingbird moth hovered beside the flower and extended its proboscis towards the petals.
一隻蜂鳥鷹蛾停在花朵旁，伸出管狀口器探向花瓣。
The nature documentary showed a hawk moth with a proboscis longer than its entire body.
這部自然紀錄片展示了一隻天蛾，其管狀口器比整個身體還長。
- haustellum
The technical term for the sucking organ of certain insects, especially flies; more specialised than 'proboscis'.
文法句型
[the/some] proboscis of [invertebrate]
用法筆記
This sense focuses on non-piercing feeding tubes used for drinking. For insects that pierce skin or plant tissue (mosquitoes, houseflies), see sense 4.
4. A tube-shaped mouth part of certain insects, such as mosquitoes and houseflies,
刺吸式口器
昆蟲用於刺穿和吸食的管狀器官
A tube-shaped mouth part of certain insects, such as mosquitoes and houseflies, that is used for piercing skin or other surfaces and sucking up liquids such as blood or plant juices.
Liam felt a sting when the mosquito pushed its proboscis into his skin.
蚊子將刺吸式口器刺入 Liam 的皮膚時，他感到一陣刺痛。
pushed + through skin to reach blood vessel
The housefly uses its proboscis like a sponge, dabbing onto food to soak up liquid.
家蠅像海綿一樣使用其刺吸式口器，在食物上點沾以吸取液體。
Under a magnifying glass, the mosquito's proboscis looks like a tiny needle with serrated edges.
在放大鏡下，蚊子的刺吸式口器看起來像一根尖端帶有鋸齒的細針。
Hamza watched the mosquito's thin proboscis pierce his skin and begin to draw blood.
Hamza 看著蚊子細長的口器刺入他的手臂，開始吸血。
- stylet
The needle-like part of a piercing proboscis; 'proboscis' is the whole organ, while 'stylet' refers specifically to the piercing component.
文法句型
[the/some] proboscis of [insect]
用法筆記
Distinguish from sense 3: sense 4 involves piercing (skin, fruit, plant tissue) and sucking, while sense 3 involves only drinking surface liquids like nectar without piercing.
5. A small, movable organ on the front end (scolex) of certain tapeworms that can s
鉤器
絛蟲頭節的可伸縮附著器官
A small, movable organ on the front end (scolex) of certain tapeworms that can stick out and hook onto the inside wall of the host's intestine, helping the worm stay attached.
The tapeworm's scolex has four suckers and a ring of hooks around its proboscis.
絛蟲的頭節上有四個吸盤，以及一圈圍繞著鉤器的小鉤。
scolex bears + ring of hooks around proboscis
Researchers watched the tapeworm extend its proboscis to anchor itself to the host's intestinal wall.
研究人員觀察到絛蟲伸出鉤器，將自己固定在宿主的腸壁上。
Each segment of the tapeworm matures independently while the proboscis holds the head in place.
絛蟲的每個節片獨立成熟，而鉤器則將頭部固定在原位。
Under the microscope, the tapeworm's proboscis appeared covered in tiny, backward-facing hooks.
在顯微鏡下，絛蟲的鉤器表面布滿了細小且向後彎曲的鉤子。
文法句型
the proboscis of [tapeworm species]
用法筆記
Highly specialised term found mainly in parasitology textbooks and research articles. The tapeworm proboscis is distinct from both the elephant trunk and the insect mouthpart senses — it is a holdfast organ, not a feeding structure.