ligula

[ lig-yuh-luh ]

noun,plural lig·u·lae

[lig-yuh-lee], /ˈlɪg yəˌli/, lig·u·las.

Botany, Zoology. a tonguelike or strap-shaped part or organ.
Botany. ligule.

Origin of ligula

1750–60; <New Latin, special use of Latin li(n)gula spoon, shoe-strap, equivalent to lig-, variant stem of lingere to lick + -ula-ule

Other words from ligula

lig·u·lar, adjective
lig·u·loid, adjective

Words Nearby ligula

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use ligula in a sentence

Paraglossa, par-a-glos′a, n. one of the two appendages of the ligula in insects.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 3 of 4: N-R) | Various
It contained a long ligula, a spathomele, a cyathiscomele, and a double olivary probe.
Surgical Instruments in Greek and Roman Times | John Stewart Milne
Epilobe: of mentum in Carabidae, really corresponds to a partially divided ligula: a lateral appendage of a bilobed mentum.
Explanation of Terms Used in Entomology | John. B. Smith
Papilla: a minute, soft projection: specifically the modified ligula in silk spinning caterpillars.
Explanation of Terms Used in Entomology | John. B. Smith
Tubus: a term used to designate the corneous base of a ligula: the sheath of the tongue.
Explanation of Terms Used in Entomology | John. B. Smith

British Dictionary definitions for ligula

ligula

/ (ˈlɪɡjʊlə) /

nounplural -lae (-ˌliː) or -las

entomol the terminal part of the labium of an insect consisting of paired lobes
a variant spelling of ligule

Origin of ligula

C18: New Latin; see ligule

Derived forms of ligula

ligular, adjective
liguloid, adjective

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

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