Stool

How to spell stool

5 letters · 1 syllable

How to pronounce stool

What does stool mean?

1. nounA small seat without a back or arms, supported on legs.
2. nounFaecal matter passed from the bowels, especially as examined by a doctor.

Stool in a sentence

• She perched on a tall stool at the kitchen counter.

• The doctor requested a stool sample to check for infection.

• A tall wooden stool stood at the end of the bar near the rail.

• A change in stool colour can signal a digestive problem.

Where does stool come from?

Language of origin: Germanic

Stool is a thoroughly native English word, descending from the Old English stol, which simply meant a seat or chair of any kind. It belongs to a wide Germanic family and is a close relative of the modern German Stuhl, also meaning 'chair', with both tracing back to an ancient root meaning 'to stand' or 'to be set in place'. In early use a stool could be quite grand, including a throne or seat of authority, before the meaning narrowed to the plain backless seat we picture today. The medical sense, meaning the matter passed from the bowels, came from the old 'close-stool', a covered seat that concealed a chamber pot; physicians began speaking of what the patient produced when sitting on it. The spelling has stayed simple and double-o throughout its long history, which is why it gives modern writers very little trouble.

How the word is built

• stool (from Old English stol: seat); single root word, no prefix or suffix