/ˌepiˈglätəs/
Noun, pl. epiglottises or epiglottides
1. A flap that is made of elastic cartilage tissue covered with a mucous membrane, attached to the entrance of the larynx. It projects obliquely upwards behind the tongue and the hyoid bone, pointing dorsally. (wikipedia.org)
2. A cartilaginous organ in the throat of terrestrial vertebrates covering the glottis when swallowing to prevent food and liquid from entering the trachea, and in Homo sapiens also a speech organ. (wiktionary.org)
3. A cartilaginous lid like appendage which closes the glottis while food or drink is passing while food or drink is passing through the pharynx. (biology-online.org)
Word origin: From Late Latin epiglottis, from Greek epiglottis, literally “(that which is) upon the tongue,” from epi “on” (see epi-) + glottis, from glotta, variant of glossa “tongue” (see gloss (n.2)). An earlier form was epiglote (c.1400), from Old French epiglotte.