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apothecium

[ ap-uh-thee-shee-uhm, -see- ]
/ ˌæp əˈθi ʃi əm, -si- /
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noun, plural ap·o·the·ci·a [ap-uh-thee-shee-uh, -see-uh]. /ˌæp əˈθi ʃi ə, -si ə/. Botany, Mycology.
the fruit of certain lichens and fungi: usually an open, saucer-shaped or cup-shaped body, the inner surface of which is covered with a layer that bears asci.
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Origin of apothecium

1820–30; <New Latin <Greek apo-apo- + thēkíon, equivalent to thḗk(ē) case (see theca) + -ion diminutive suffix

OTHER WORDS FROM apothecium

ap·o·the·cial [ap-uh-thee-shuhl], /ˌæp əˈθi ʃəl/, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use apothecium in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for apothecium

apothecium
/ (ˌæpəˈθiːsɪəm) /

noun plural -cia (-sɪə)
botany a cup-shaped structure that contains the asci, esp in lichens; a type of ascocarp

Derived forms of apothecium

apothecial (ˌæpəˈθiːsɪəl), adjective

Word Origin for apothecium

C19: from New Latin, from apo- + Greek thēkion a little case
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for apothecium

apothecium
[ ăp′ə-thēsē-əm, -shē- ]

Plural apothecia (ăp′ə-thēsē-ə, -shē-)
A disk-shaped or cup-shaped ascocarp of some lichens and the fungi Ascomycetes.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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