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bulla

American  
[bool-uh, buhl-uh] / ˈbʊl ə, ˈbʌl ə /

noun

plural

bullae

  1. a seal attached to an official document, as a papal bull.

  2. an ancient Roman pendant, consisting of a rounded box containing an amulet.

  3. Pathology. a large vesicle.

  4. Zoology. a blisterlike or bubblelike prominence of a bone, as that of the tympanic bone in the skull of certain mammals.

bulla British  
/ ˈbʌlə, ˈbʊlə /

noun

  1. a leaden seal affixed to a papal bull, having a representation of Saints Peter and Paul on one side and the name of the reigning pope on the other

  2. an ancient Roman rounded metal or leather box containing an amulet, worn around the neck

  3. pathol another word for blister

  4. anatomy a rounded bony projection

"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

Etymology

Origin of bulla

1840–50; < Latin: bubble, also stud, boss, knob (whence Medieval Latin bulla official seal)

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The store sold everyday goods and featured a large brick oven that was used to make its famous bulla cakes, flavorful flat pastries made with flour, ginger and molasses.

From Washington Post • Jan. 13, 2021

In ancient times, a seal stamp, or bulla, was used to authenticate documents or items.

From Fox News • Apr. 1, 2019

L. bullire to be in a bubbling motion, from bulla bubble; akin to Gr.

From Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (2nd 100 Pages) by Webster, Noah

Occiput less inclined anterodorsally; top nearly flat, less arched than that of G. b. industrius; auditory bulla averaging slightly larger and less inflated.

From Subspeciation in Pocket Gophers of Kansas, [KU. Vol. 1 No. 11] by Hall, E. Raymond (Eugene Raymond)

Tympanic bulla smaller than foramen magnum; hind foot more than 74; geographic range wholly in United States.

From A Synopsis of the North American Lagomorpha by Hall, E. Raymond (Eugene Raymond)

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.