spatulate

[spach-uh-lit, -leyt]

adjective

shaped like a spatula; rounded more or less like a spoon.
Botany. having a broad, rounded end and a narrow, attenuate base, as a leaf.

Origin of spatulate

From the New Latin word spatulātus, dating back to 1750–60. See spatula, -ate¹

Related formssub·spat·u·late, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for spatulate

Historical Examples of spatulate

Or sometimes the palm may be of one type, say spatulate, with all the fingers mixed.
Palmistry for All
Cheiro
These are spatulate in form, with a terraced terminal marking.
Archeological Expedition to Arizona in 1895
Jesse Walter Fewkes
In the Dinosaur Hadrosaurus they are exceedingly large and spatulate.
The Vertebrate Skeleton
Sidney H. Reynolds
The flower is composed of thirty-eight spatulate petals and fourteen sepals.
The Fantastic Clan
John James Thornber
The petals are broad and spatulate and a bit thick, not opening wide.
The Fantastic Clan
John James Thornber

British Dictionary definitions for spatulate

spatulate

adjective

shaped like a spatula
Also: spathulate botany having a narrow base and a broad rounded apexa spatulate leaf

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

spatulate in Medicine

spatulate

[spăch′ə-lĭt]

adj.

Having a broad flat end.