utricle
Americannoun
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a small sac or baglike body, as an air-filled cavity in a seaweed.
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Botany. a thin bladderlike pericarp or seed vessel.
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Anatomy. the larger of two sacs in the membranous labyrinth of the internal ear.
noun
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anatomy the larger of the two parts of the membranous labyrinth of the internal ear Compare saccule
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botany the bladder-like one-seeded indehiscent fruit of certain plants, esp sedges
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of utricle
1725–35; < Latin utriculus, diminutive of uter bag; see -cle 1
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.
There are five vestibular receptor organs in the inner ear: the utricle, the saccule, and three semicircular canals.
From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022
The utricle and saccule measure head orientation: their calcium carbonate crystals shift when the head is tilted, thereby activating hair cells.
From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022
In those individuals, Balaban says, further tests implicated damage to the ear's otolith organs, the utricle and the saccule, key to sensing gravity.
From Science Magazine • Jun. 20, 2018
Balaban and his colleagues venture that a directed energy source could have damaged the exquisitely sensitive utricle and saccule.
From Science Magazine • Jun. 20, 2018
When the pericarp is thin, and appears like a bladder surrounding the seed, the achene is termed a utricle, as in Amarantaceae.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 3 "Frost" to "Fyzabad" by Various
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.
