cotyledon

[ kot-l-eed-n ]

/ ˌkɒt lˈid n /

noun Botany.

the primary or rudimentary leaf of the embryo of seed plants.

Anatomy. any of several lobules of the placenta.

Nearby words

cotunnite, coturnix, cotwal, coty, coty, rené, cotyledon, cotyloid, cotyloid cavity, cotyloid joint, cotylosaur, cotype

Origin of cotyledon

1535–45; < Latin: navelwort < Greek kotylēdṓn a plant (probably navelwort), literally, a cuplike hollow, derivative of kotýlē cup

Related forms

cot·y·le·don·al, cot·y·le·don·ar·y

[kot-l-eed-n-er-ee] /ˌkɒt lˈid nˌɛr i/, cot·y·le·don·ous, adjectivenon·cot·y·le·don·al, adjectivenon·cot·y·le·don·ar·y, adjectivenon·cot·y·le·don·ous, adjective

pseu·do·cot·y·le·don·al, adjectivepseu·do·cot·y·le·don·ar·y, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for cotyledon

The cotyledon c envelops the young bud, which protrudes at the slit during germination.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 3|Various
The name Echeveria is now given up by botanists for Cotyledon.
The Practical Garden-Book|C. E. Hunn
The term monocotyledon is applied to these plants because the embryo has only one cotyledon or seed-leaf.
The Sea Shore|William S. Furneaux
Within the cotyledon will be found a little growing shoot pointed toward the top of the kernel.
The First Book of Farming|Charles L. Goodrich

The epiblast has been regarded as representing a second cotyledon, but this is a very doubtful interpretation.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 12, Slice 3|Various

British Dictionary definitions for cotyledon

cotyledon

/ (ˌkɒtɪˈliːdən) /

noun

a simple embryonic leaf in seed-bearing plants, which, in some species, forms the first green leaf after germination

a tuft of villi on the mammalian placenta

Derived Formscotyledonous or cotyledonoid, adjectivecotyledonal, adjectivecotyledonary, adjective

Word Origin for cotyledon

C16: from Latin: a plant, navelwort, from Greek kotulēdōn, from kotulē cup, hollow

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 cotyledon

cotyledon

from 1540s, in various sense, from Latin cotyledon "pennywort, navelwort," from Greek kotyledon "cup-shaped cavity," from kotyle "hollow thing, small vessel," also the name of a small liquid measure (nearly a half-pint); of uncertain origin. Botanical sense is 1776, from Linnaeus (1751).

Medicine definitions for cotyledon

cotyledon

[ kŏt′l-ēd′n ]

n.

One of the lobules constituting the uterine side of the placenta, consisting mainly of a rounded mass of villi.

A leaf of the embryo of a seed plant, which, upon germination, either remains in the seed or emerges, enlarges, and becomes green; a seed leaf.

Science definitions for cotyledon

cotyledon

[ kŏt′l-ēd′n ]

A leaf of the embryo of a seed-bearing plant. Most cotyledons emerge, enlarge, and become green after the seed has germinated. Cotyledons either store food for the growing embryo (as in monocotyledons) or absorb food that has been stored in the endosperm (as in other angiosperms) for eventual distribution to the growing parts of the embryo. Also called seed leaf See more at eudicotyledon monocotyledon.