LATIN DICTIONARYLexicon Latīnum
noun · femininefirst declension

cloāca

cloāca f (genitive cloācae)
Classical[kɫoˈaː.ka]Ecclesiastical[kloˈaː.ka]

Meaning

  1. An underground drain, sewer.
  2. humorousOf the mouth and intestines of a voracious person.
  3. New Latincloaca (anatomical feature serving as the common outlet for the urogenital ducts and rectum)
    In avium cloaca duae papillae adsunt conicae aut triangulares, latae, depressae in quibus ostia vasorum deferentium conspiciuntur.In the cloaca of birds there are two conical or triangular, broad, depressed papillae in which the openings of the deferent ducts are visible.1864, Jan van der Hoeven, chapter III, in Philosophia zoologica, volume I, Leiden: Brill, page 74:

Declension

declension
formsingularplural
nominativecloācacloācae
genitivecloācaecloācārum
dativecloācaecloācīs
accusativecloācamcloācās
ablativecloācācloācīs
vocativecloācacloācae

clŏāca, ae, f. 1. cluo = purgo; cf. Gr. κλύζω,
I. an artificial canal in Rome, constructed by Tarquinius Priscus, by which the filth was carried from the streets into the Tiber; in gen., a sewer, drain, Cic. Sest. 35, 77; id. Caecin. 13, 36; Hor. S. 2, 3, 242 al.; cf. Liv. 1, 38, 6; 1, 56, 2; 5, 55, 5; Plin. 36, 15, 24, § 104 sq.; Cassiod. Var. 3, 30; Dion. Halic. 3, 67; v. Dict. of Antiq. p. 269 sq. —
B. Humorously, the stomach of a drunken woman, Plaut. Curc. 1, 2, 29; cf. intestini, Varr. ap. Non. p. 209, 19.—*
C. Prov.: arcem facere e cloacā, much ado about nothing, Cic. Planc. 40, 95.

Origins

Related to cluō (“cleanse”), but the derivation is uncertain. See De Vaan (2008) for discussion.

Descendants
  • Italianchiavica
  • Portuguesecolaga
  • Catalanclaveguerafrom Vulgar Latin *clavacaria
  • Catalancloaca
  • Englishcloaca
  • Frenchcloaque
  • GermanKloake
  • Italiancloaca
  • Portuguesecloaca
  • Romaniancloacă

In the Academy Smith's classical dictionaries

AntiquitiesCloacaCloaca (ὑπόνομος), a drain. The removal of the sewage of cities by an extensive system of drains is as old as the Assyrian civilisation, for we find i…

Quick answers

What does cloāca mean in Latin?
cloāca, a noun, means “An underground drain, sewer.; cloaca (anatomical feature serving as the common outlet for the urogenital ducts and rectum)”.
What is the genitive of cloāca?
The genitive singular is cloācae. cloāca is feminine, first declension.
How do you pronounce cloāca?
In classical Latin, [kɫoˈaː.ka]; in ecclesiastical (church) Latin, [kloˈaː.ka].