pileus
Americannoun
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pilei,
plural
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pileus
plural
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Mycology. the horizontal portion of a mushroom, bearing gills, tubes, etc., on its underside; a cap.
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Zoology.
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the umbrella or bell of a jellyfish.
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Also called cap cloud. Also called scarf cloud. Meteorology. a small, thin cloud just above or attached to a growing cumulus cloud.
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a felt skullcap worn by the ancient Romans and Greeks.
noun
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pilei
plural
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of pileus
1750–60; < New Latin, special use of Latin pīleus skullcap; akin to Greek pîlos felt, felt cap
Vocabulary lists containing pileus
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
This species is unique for the dorsal attachment of its stipe to the top of the pileus, and the abundant cystidia covering all surfaces of the fruiting body.
From Salon ● Apr. 26, 2025
The reverse features two daggers on either side of a cap known as a pileus.
From New York Times ● Mar. 22, 2023
A cumulus, for example, might just be a cumulus; or it might be a cumulus fractus, if its edges are tattered; or a cumulus pileus, if a smaller cloud appears over it like a hood.
From New York Times ● May 4, 2016
L. erminea differs in superior, torn ring, glabrous pileus, and radishy smell. sistrata, Fr.
From European Fungus Flora: Agaricaceae by George Massee
Gills thick at the base, edge acute, rather waxy, often branched; pileus often hygrophanous.
From European Fungus Flora: Agaricaceae by George Massee
The flesh was somewhat lighter in color than the outside pilei, which extended horizontally from the tubercle.
From The Mushroom, Edible and Otherwise Its Habitat and its Time of Growth by Miron Elisha Hard
P. subsessile, imbricate, pilei tongue-shaped, glabrous, subrugose, rufous then tan, edge involute, entire; g. closely crowded, rufescent. vulpinus, Fr.
From European Fungus Flora: Agaricaceae by George Massee
Their radiately cracked pilei, with the inner substance showing yellow through the cracks, will help to distinguish the species.
From The Mushroom, Edible and Otherwise Its Habitat and its Time of Growth by Miron Elisha Hard
The pilei are pulvinate, narrow, zoned, often laterally confluent; ochraceous-white, tomentose, then smooth, laccate.
From The Mushroom, Edible and Otherwise Its Habitat and its Time of Growth by Miron Elisha Hard
The general character is shown in the illustration, being nearly white but many of the pilei are somewhat smoky.
From The Mushroom, Edible and Otherwise Its Habitat and its Time of Growth by Miron Elisha Hard
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
