cul-de-sac
[ kuhl-duh-sak, -sak, koo l-; French kyduh-sak ]
/ ˈkʌl dəˈsæk, -ˌsæk, ˈkʊl-; French küdəˈsak /
noun, plural culs-de-sac [kuhlz-duh-sak, -sak, koo lz-; French kyduh-sak] /ˈkʌlz dəˈsæk, -ˌsæk, ˈkʊlz-; French küdəˈsak/.
a street, lane, etc., closed at one end; blind alley; dead-end street.
any situation in which further progress is impossible.
the hemming in of a military force on all sides except behind.
Anatomy.
a saclike cavity, tube, or the like, open only at one end, as the cecum.
Origin of cul-de-sac
1730–40; < French: literally, bottom of the sack
Words nearby cul-de-sac
cuitlacoche,
cuittle,
cuj.,
cuke,
cukor,
cul-de-sac,
cul8r,
culbertson,
culch,
culchie,
culdocentesis
Example sentences from the Web for cul-de-sac
British Dictionary definitions for cul-de-sac
cul-de-sac
/ (ˈkʌldəˌsæk, ˈkʊl-) /
noun plural culs-de-sac or cul-de-sacs
a road with one end blocked off; dead end
an inescapable position
any tube-shaped bodily cavity or pouch closed at one end, such as the caecum
Word Origin for cul-de-sac
C18: from French, literally: bottom of the bag
Medical definitions for cul-de-sac
cul-de-sac
[ kŭl′dĭ-săk′, kul′- ]
n. pl. culs-de-sac (kŭlz′-, kulz′-)
A saclike cavity or tube open only at one end.