pili

¹ American  

[pee-lee] / piˈli /

noun

plural

pilies

1. a Philippine tree, Canarium ovatum, the edible seeds of which taste like a sweet almond.

2. Also called pili nut.  the seed of this tree.

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pili ² American  

[pahy-lahy] / ˈpaɪ laɪ /

noun

1. Biology. plural of pilus.

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pili- ³ American  

1. a combining form meaning “hair,” used in the formation of compound words.

   piliform.

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pili ¹ British  

/ pɪˈliː /

noun

1. a burseraceous Philippine tree, Canarium ovatum, with edible seeds resembling almonds

2. Also called: pili nut.  the seed of this tree

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pili ² British  

/ ˈpaɪlɪ /

plural noun

1. bacteriol short curled hairlike processes on the surface of certain bacteria that are involved in conjugation and the attachment of the bacteria to other cells

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Etymology

Origin of pili¹

From Tagalog

Origin of pili-³

Combining form representing Latin pilus; -i-

Example Sentences

"The bacteria use their pili to bind to the sensor in several places, which allows them to hang on particularly well," says Terfort.

From Science Daily • Mar. 25, 2024

E. coli has many short arms, known as pili, which the bacterium uses to recognize its host's glycocalyx and cling onto it.

From Science Daily • Mar. 25, 2024

Prof Helen Wallace is one of the world's leading authorities on the kenari, and its sister trees and nuts, the pili and galip.

From BBC • Nov. 23, 2022

Our leading hypothesis is that phages use CtrA to guesstimate when there will be enough bacteria nearby sporting pili and flagella that they can readily infect.

From Salon • Sep. 21, 2022

There was no musical instrument, the performers were men, and the mele they cantillated went as follows: A pili, a pili, A pili ka'u manu Ke kepau 485 o ka ulu-laau.

From Unwritten Literature of Hawaii The Sacred Songs of the Hula by Emerson, Nathaniel Bright