Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun The section of the large intestine extending from the cecum to the rectum.
  • noun A punctuation mark ( : ) used after a word introducing a quotation, explanation, example, or series and often after the salutation of a business letter.
  • noun The sign ( : ) used between numbers or groups of numbers in expressions of time (2:30 AM) and ratios (1:2).
  • noun A section of a metrical period in quantitative verse, consisting of two to six feet and in Latin verse having one principal accent.
  • noun An analogous unit or division of classical Greek or Latin prose.

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Spanish colón, after Cristóbal Colón, Christopher Columbus.]

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Latin cōlon, part of a verse, from Greek kōlon, limb, member, metrical unit.]

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English, from Latin, from Greek kolon, large intestine.]

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Examples

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