ocellus

[ oh-sel-uhs ]

/ oʊˈsɛl əs /

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noun, plural o·cel·li

[oh-sel-ahy]. /oʊˈsɛl aɪ/.

a type of simple eye common to invertebrates, consisting of retinal cells, pigments, and nerve fibers.

an eyelike spot, as on a peacock feather.

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Origin of ocellus

1810–20; <Latin: little eye, diminutive of oculuseye; see -elle

Words nearby ocellus

Oceanus Procellarum, ocellar, ocellated, ocellated turkey, ocellation, ocellus, ocelot, och, oche, ocher, ochlesis

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

How to use ocellus in a sentence

Stem′let, a little or young stem; Stem′ma, a pedigree or family tree: an ocellus.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 4 of 4: S-Z and supplements)|Various
Diameter of ocellus: Maximal outside diameter of largest (not conspicuously ovoid or oblong) ocellus on carapace.
North American Recent Soft-shelled Turtles (Family Trionychidae)|Robert G. Webb
So that the ancestry of the name runs thus:—Ocellus—œillet—Willy—William.
Springtime and Other Essays|Francis Darwin
The usual markings occur, but there is no eye-spot, or ocellus, on the primaries.
The Butterfly Book|William Jacob Holland

An ocellus with a smaller near it, called also Sesquiocellus.
An Introduction to Entomology: Vol. IV (of 4)|William Kirby

British Dictionary definitions for ocellus

ocellus

/ (ɒˈsɛləs) /

noun plural -li (-laɪ)

the simple eye of insects and some other invertebrates, consisting basically of light-sensitive cells

any eyelike marking in animals, such as the eyespot on the tail feather of a peacock

botany

an enlarged discoloured cell in a leaf
a swelling on the sporangium of certain fungi

Derived forms of ocellus

ocellar, adjectiveocellate (ˈɒsɪˌleɪt) or ocellated (ˈɒsɪˌleɪtɪd), adjectiveocellation, noun

Word Origin for ocellus

C19: via New Latin from Latin: small eye, from oculus eye

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

Scientific definitions for ocellus

ocellus

[ ō-sĕl′əs ]

Plural ocelli (ō-sĕl′ī′)

A small, simple eye or eyespot, found in many invertebrates.

A marking that resembles an eye, as on the wings of some butterflies.