papilla

[ puh-pil-uh ]

/ pəˈpɪl ə /

Save This Word!

noun, plural pa·pil·lae

[puh-pil-ee]. /pəˈpɪl i/.

any small, nipplelike process or projection.

one of certain small protuberances concerned with the senses of touch, taste, and smell: the papillae of the tongue.

a small vascular process at the root of a hair.

a papule or pimple.

QUIZ

WILL YOU SAIL OR STUMBLE ON THESE GRAMMAR QUESTIONS?

Smoothly step over to these common grammar mistakes that trip many people up. Good luck!

Question 1 of 7

Fill in the blank: I can’t figure out _____ gave me this gift.

who

whom

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of papilla

1400–50; late Middle English <Latin: nipple, teat, diminutive of papula pimple. See pap²

OTHER WORDS FROM papilla

pap·il·lar

[pap-uh-ler, puh-pil-er], /ˈpæp ə lər, pəˈpɪl ər/, adjective

Words nearby papilla

Paphos, Papiamento, papier collé, papier-mâché, papilionaceous, papilla, papillary, papillary muscle, papilliform, papilloma, papillomavirus

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

How to use papilla in a sentence

Each Wolffian duct ends blindly in front, and the two unite behind to open by a common papilla into the cloaca.
The Works of Francis Maitland Balfour, Volume 1|Francis Maitland Balfour
Papillif′erous, papillate: bearing one or more fleshy excrescences; Papill′iform, like a papilla in form.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 3 of 4: N-R)|Various
In case of failure to destroy an individual papilla, should a second attempt be made at the same sitting?
Essentials of Diseases of the Skin|Henry Weightman Stelwagon
A short time after the appearance of the vacuoles the entire conidium extends itself so that the papilla disappears.
Fungi: Their Nature and Uses|Mordecai Cubitt Cooke

A highly vascular dermal papilla projects into the base of the hair.
The Vertebrate Skeleton|Sidney H. Reynolds

British Dictionary definitions for papilla

papilla

/ (pəˈpɪlə) /

noun plural -lae (-liː)

the small projection of tissue at the base of a hair, tooth, or feather

any other similar protuberance

any minute blunt hair or process occurring in plants

Derived forms of papilla

papillary, papillate or papillose, adjective

Word Origin for papilla

C18: from Latin: nipple; related to Latin papula pimple

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 papilla

papilla

[ pə-pĭl′ə ]

Plural papillae (pə-pĭl′ē)

A small part projecting from the surface of an organism. In mammals, the nipples of the mammary glands and the taste buds of the tongue are papillae. Papillae are often seen on the undersurfaces of mosses and ferns.