pulvillus

[ puhl-vil-uhs ]

/ pʌlˈvɪl əs /

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noun, plural pul·vil·li

[puhl-vil-ahy]. /pʌlˈvɪl aɪ/. Entomology.

a soft, padlike structure located at the base of each claw on the feet of certain insects.

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Origin of pulvillus

1685–95; <Latin, diminutive of pulvīnus cushion

Words nearby pulvillus

pulu, pulv., pulverable, pulverize, pulverulent, pulvillus, pulvinar, pulvinate, pulvinus, puma, pumelo

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

How to use pulvillus in a sentence

The little tarsus is like the tarsus of the hind leg with its claws and its pulvillus, only, of course, it is smaller.
The Insect Folk|Margaret Warner Morley
Extension plate: a structure at the base of the pulvillus whose function it is to extend it.
Explanation of Terms Used in Entomology|John. B. Smith
Extension sole: the pad-like pulvillus which may be extended by the extension plate through the pressure plate.
Explanation of Terms Used in Entomology|John. B. Smith
Pad: the pulvillus, or that part of it which is capable of extension and retraction in some Coleoptera.
Explanation of Terms Used in Entomology|John. B. Smith

Plantula: a lobe of the divided tarsal pulvillus; one of the soles or climbing cushions of the foot: see arolium; pulviglus.
Explanation of Terms Used in Entomology|John. B. Smith

British Dictionary definitions for pulvillus

pulvillus

/ (pʌlˈvɪləs) /

noun plural -li (-laɪ)

a small pad between the claws at the end of an insect's leg

Word Origin for pulvillus

C18: from Latin, from pulvīnulus, diminutive of pulvīnus cushion

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