1. A short, blind-ended tube attached to the cecum or caecum: The appendix is a small pouch-like tube that is linked to the large intestine, and since it has no use in the body, it can be surgically removed if it becomes infected.

The appendix is in the first portion of the large bowel, situated in the lower right quadrant of the abdomen.

The cecum receives fecal material from the small bowel (ileum) which opens into it and the appendix, as stated above, is attached to the cecum.
2. Etymology: The word "cecum" comes from Latin caecus, "blind". This refers to the fact that the bottom of the cecum is a blind pouch (a cul de sac) leading nowhere.