Meaning

noun a small vascular growth on the surface of a mucous membrane

noun one of two forms that coelenterates take (e.g. a hydra or coral): usually sedentary with a hollow cylindrical body usually with a ring of tentacles around the mouth

originFrom Latin polypus (“a polyp, a polypus in the nose”), from Ancient Greek πολύπους (polúpous, from πολύς (polús, “many”) + πούς (poús, “foot”)). Doublet of polypus.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0