mycelium

American  

[mahy-see-lee-uhm] / maɪˈsi li əm /

noun

Mycology.

plural

mycelia

1. the mass of hyphae that form the vegetative part of a fungus.

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mycelium British  

/ ˈmaɪsɪˌlɔɪd, maɪˈsiːlɪəm /

noun

1. the vegetative body of fungi: a mass of branching filaments (hyphae) that spread throughout the nutrient substratum

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mycelium Scientific  

/ mī-sē′lē-əm /

plural

mycelia

1. The mass of fine branching tubes (known as hyphae) that forms the main growing structure of a fungus. Visible structures like mushrooms are reproductive structures produced by the mycelium.

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Other Word Forms

• mycelial adjective
• myceloid adjective

Etymology

Origin of mycelium

1830–40; < New Latin, equivalent to Greek myk- myc- + ( h ) ḗl ( os ) wart, nail + New Latin -ium -ium

Example Sentences

Reserved moss and mycelium grow from a room with a crystal floor where I heard members vigorously doing breathwork.

From Los Angeles Times

“It’s a decompression room where people can dip out of the main anchor to have a quiet meditative moment and recaliberate. It’s going to be all-natural treatments with a mycelia ceiling.”

From Los Angeles Times

These are placed into moulds, where mycelium, the root-like structure of fungi, takes over.

From Barron's

They included a structure grown from mycelium, the root network of fungus.

From BBC

Or could a mushroom also be synonymous with its fungal roots, otherwise known as mycelium, from which the fruiting bodies sprout?

From Los Angeles Times