diverticulum

[dahy-ver-tik-yuh-luh m]

noun, plural di·ver·tic·u·la

[dahy-ver-tik-yuh-luh] /ˌdaɪ vərˈtɪk yə lə/. Anatomy.

a blind, tubular sac or process branching off from a canal or cavity, especially an abnormal, saclike herniation of the mucosal layer through the muscular wall of the colon.

Origin of diverticulum

1640–50; < Latin, variant of dēverticulum byway, tributary, means of escape, equivalent to dēverti- (combining form of dēvertere, equivalent to dē- de- + vertere to turn) + -culum -cule²

Related formsdi·ver·tic·u·lar, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for diverticula

Historical Examples of diverticula

He regarded them as the cause of the gas bubbles to be found in diverticula.
Handbook of Medical Entomology
William Albert Riley
These cells are diverticula lined by a continuation of the gastric mucous membrane.
The Anatomy of the Human Peritoneum and Abdominal Cavity
George. S. Huntington
These pouches or diverticula of the intestine form the so-called pyloric cca or appendices of these fish.
The Anatomy of the Human Peritoneum and Abdominal Cavity
George. S. Huntington
It has commenced to bud off diverticula, which subsequently become the tubules of the Wolffian body (vide fig. 13, wd).
The Works of Francis Maitland Balfour, Volume 1
Francis Maitland Balfour
The diverticula from the alimentary cavity form the water-vascular system and the somatic and splanchnic layers of mesoblast.
The Works of Francis Maitland Balfour, Volume 1
Francis Maitland Balfour

British Dictionary definitions for diverticula

diverticulum

noun plural -la (-lə)

any sac or pouch formed by herniation of the wall of a tubular organ or part, esp the intestines

Derived Formsdiverticular, adjective

Word Origin for diverticulum

C16: from New Latin, from Latin dēverticulum by-path, from dēvertere to turn aside, from vertere to turn

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 diverticula

diverticulum

"blind tube" (anatomical), 1819, Modern Latin, from Latin deverticulum "a bypath," from devertere "to turn aside" (see divert).

diverticula in Medicine

diverticulum

[dī′vûr-tĭk′yə-ləm]

n. pl. di•ver•tic•u•la (-lə)

A pouch or sac branching out from a hollow organ or structure.

Related formsdi′ver•tic′u•lar adj.

diverticula in Science

diverticulum

[dī′vûr-tĭk′yə-ləm]

Plural diverticula

A pouch or sac branching out from a portion of the gastrointestinal tract, especially the large intestine. A diverticulum can occur as a normal structure, or it can be caused by a hernia.