granule

[gran-yool]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR granule ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a little grain.

a small particle; pellet.

a corpuscle; sporule.

Origin of granule

First recorded in 1645–55, granule is from the Late Latin word grānulum small grain. See grain, -ule

Can be confusedboulder cobblestone granule pebble rock stone

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

Related Words for granule

grime, dirt, soil, powder, soot, earth, lint, sand, cereal, corn, refuse, grit, smut, ashes, filth, ground, loess, granules, cinders, kernel

Examples from the Web for granule

Historical Examples of granule

When a variole, tubercle, granule, &c. has a depression in its centre.
An Introduction to Entomology: Vol. IV (of 4)
William Kirby
But no power that we could employ was capable of detecting a granule in it.
Scientific American Supplement, Vol. XIX, No. 470, Jan. 3, 1885
Various
In the upper portions of the glacier movement due to pressure probably takes place by the gliding of one granule over another.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 12, Slice 1
Various
The size of the individual granules is constant in any animal species for every kind of granule—excepting only the mast cells.
Histology of the Blood
Paul Ehrlich
For a peripheral layer is plainly distinguishable from the central part of the granule.
Histology of the Blood
Paul Ehrlich

British Dictionary definitions for granule

granule

noun

a small grain

geology a single rock fragment in gravel, smaller than a pebble but larger than a sand grain

astronomy another name for granulation (def. 5)

Word Origin for granule

C17: from Late Latin grānulum a small grain

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 granule

1650s, from French granule or directly from Late Latin granulum "small grain," diminutive of Latin granum "grain" (see corn (n.1)).

granule in Medicine

granule

[grăn′yōōl]

n.

A small grain or pellet; a particle.

A cellular or cytoplasmic particle, especially one that stains readily.

A very small pill, usually coated with gelatin or sugar.

granule in Science

granule

[grăn′yōōl]

A rock or mineral fragment larger than a sand grain and smaller than a pebble. Granules have a diameter between 2 and 4 mm (0.08 and 0.16 in) and are often rounded.

Any of the small, transient convective cells within the Sun's photosphere where hot gases rise and quickly dissipate. Granules are generally between a few hundred and 1,500 km in width. They completely cover the Sun's surface, giving it its characteristic grainy or stippled look, and form and break up within a matter of minutes.

An aggregate of enclosed grainy matter found in a cell. Granulocytes, mast cells and other cells contain granules in their cytoplasm, which differ in size and can often be identified by a characteristic laboratory stain based on their composition. Granules produce and store biologically active substances, the release of which is called degranulation. The granules of granulocytes contain mostly multiple enzymes and other proteins; those of mast cells contain histamine and other chemical mediators.