hilum

[ hahy-luhm ]

noun,plural hi·la [hahy-luh]. /ˈhaɪ lə/.
  1. Botany.

    • the mark or scar on a seed produced by separation from its funicle or placenta.

    • the nucleus of a granule of starch.

  2. Mycology. a mark or scar on a spore at the point of attachment to the spore-bearing structure.

  1. Anatomy. the region at which the vessels, nerves, etc., enter or emerge from a part.

Origin of hilum

1
1650–60; <New Latin; Latin: little thing, trifle; see nil

Other words from hilum

  • hilar, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use hilum in a sentence

  • Her ascension to the throne of a goddess would virtually make him ruler of Hilar.

    The Goddess of Atvatabar | William R. Bradshaw

British Dictionary definitions for hilum

hilum

/ (ˈhaɪləm) /


nounplural -la (-lə)
  1. botany

    • a scar on the surface of a seed marking its point of attachment to the seed stalk (funicle)

    • the nucleus of a starch grain

  2. a deep fissure or depression on the surface of a bodily organ around the point of entrance or exit of vessels, nerves, or ducts

Origin of hilum

1
C17: from Latin: trifle; see nihil

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

Scientific definitions for hilum

hilum

[ ləm ]


Plural hila
  1. A mark or scar on a seed, such as a bean, showing where it was formerly attached to the plant. The hilum indicates the point of attachment of the funiculus.

  2. A depression or opening through which nerves, ducts, or blood vessels pass in an organ or a gland, as in the medial aspect of the lungs or the kidneys .

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.