tentacle
/ˈtɛntəkəl/
noun
- A long, thin, flexible arm-like part of some animals, such as octopuses, squids, and jellyfish, used for feeling, grasping, or moving.
- The octopus used one of its tentacles to grab a crab from the ocean floor.
- A jellyfish's tentacles can sting even after the animal is dead.
- The diver watched in awe as the squid's tentacles reached out into the dark water.
- Something that spreads out and influences or controls many things, often in a hidden or gradual way.
- The secret organization extended its tentacles into the government.
- The corporation's tentacles reached into every corner of the local economy.
- Social media has tentacles that affect how we think and behave.