plan·u·la

[plan-yuh-luh]
noun, plural plan·u·lae [-lee] . Zoology.
the ciliate, free-swimming larva of a coelenterate.

Origin:
1865–70; < Neo-Latin, diminutive of Latin plānum something flat. See plane1, -ule

plan·u·lar, plan·u·late [plan-yuh-leyt] , adjective
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Collins
World English Dictionary
planula (ˈplænjʊlə) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
n , pl -lae
the ciliated free-swimming larva of hydrozoan coelenterates such as the hydra
 
[C19: from New Latin: a little plane, from Latin plānum level ground]
 
'planular
 
adj

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
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00:10
Planula is always a great word to know.
So is zedonk. Does it mean:
a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes.
the offspring of a zebra and a donkey.
American Heritage
Science Dictionary
planula   (plān'yə-lə)  Pronunciation Key 
Plural planulae (plān'yə-lē')
The flat, free-swimming, ciliated larva of a cnidarian.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia

planula

free-swimmingfree-swimming or crawling larval type common in many species of the phylum Cnidaria (e.g., jellyfish, corals, and sea anemones). The planula body is more or less cylindrical or egg-shaped and bears numerous cilia (tiny hairlike projections), which are used for locomotion. Planulae are produced by both of the basic body forms found in cnidarians-polyps, the stalklike, attached adult forms, and medusae, the bell- or umbrella-shaped, free-swimming adult forms. See also polyp (zoology); medusa.

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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Example sentences
When a planula finally settles, it turns into a single coral polyp.
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