cilia
[sil-ee-uh]
- Biology. minute hairlike organelles, identical in structure to flagella, that line the surfaces of certain cells and beat in rhythmic waves, providing locomotion to ciliate protozoans and moving liquids along internal epithelial tissue in animals.
- Anatomy. the eyelashes.
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Origin of cilia
1705–15; New Latin, plural of cilium eyelash, Latin: upper eyelid, perhaps a back formation from supercilium eyebrow; see supercilium
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words
grainthreadtissuewighairstylegrassfurhaircutfiberwoolstrandeyebrowmanecordwebgritstringwarptoothhairExamples from the Web for cilia
Contemporary Examples
Attorney Cilia Flores, the first lady, is actually called “First Fighter.”
Historical Examples
The hind-wings are grey; the cilia are white with a cloudy line.
New Zealand Moths and ButterfliesG. V. Hudson
The hind-wings are dull brownish-grey, with the cilia paler.
New Zealand Moths and ButterfliesG. V. Hudson
Some of the cilia are used for running or swimming, others for grasping or touching, and so on.
The Wonders of LifeErnst Haeckel
It is by means of these cilia that the animal moves through the water.
The Sea-beach at Ebb-tideAugusta Foote Arnold
The Protozoan swims by the vibration of these cilia in the water.
Elementary Zoology, Second EditionVernon L. Kellogg
cilia
- the plural of cilium
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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
Word Origin and History for cilia
n.
1715, from Latin cilia, plural of cilium "eyelid, eyelash," perhaps related to celare "to cover, hide," from PIE root *kel- "to conceal" (see cell), but words for this part of the face can be tricky (see brow). It sometimes is pluralized in English, which is an error. Related: Ciliated; ciliary; ciliate.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
cilium
[sĭl′ē-əm]
- A tiny hairlike projection on the surface of some cells and microscopic organisms, especially protozoans. Cilia are capable of whipping motions and are used by some microorganisms, such as paramecia, for movement. Cilia lining the human respiratory tract act to remove foreign matter from air before it reaches the lungs.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.