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villus - 7 dictionary results

vil⋅lus

  [vil-uhs]
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–noun, plural vil⋅li  [vil-ahy] .
1. Anatomy, Zoology. one of the minute, wormlike processes on certain membranes, esp. on the mucous membrane of the small intestine, where they serve in absorbing nutriment.
2. Botany. one of the long, soft, straight hairs covering the fruit, flowers, and other parts of certain plants.
Origin:
1695–1705; < L: shaggy hair, thick nap
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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vil·lus   (vĭl'əs)   
n.   pl. vil·li (vĭl'ī)
  1. Biology A minute projection arising from a mucous membrane, especially:
    1. One of the numerous vascular projections of the small intestine.
    2. One of the fingerlike projections of the chorion that contribute to the formation of the placenta in mammals.
  2. Botany A fine, hairlike epidermal outgrowth.

[Latin, shaggy hair.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Villus

Vil"lus\, n.; pl. Villi. [L., shaggy hair, a tuft of hair.]

1. (Anat.) One of the minute papillary processes on certain vascular membranes; a villosity; as, villi cover the lining of the small intestines of many animals and serve to increase the absorbing surface.

2. pl. (Bot.) Fine hairs on plants, resembling the pile of velvet.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Main Entry: vil·lus
Pronunciation: 'vil-&s
Function: noun
Inflected Form: plural vil·li /-"I/
: a smallslender vascular process: as a : one of the minute fingerlike processes which more or less thickly cover and give a velvety appearance to the surface of the mucous membrane of thesmall intestine and serve in the absorption of nutriment and of which each has a central blindly ending lacteal surrounded by blood capillaries and covered with epithelium b : one ofthe branching processes of the surface of the chorion of the developing embryo of most mammals that are restricted to particular areas or diffusely arranged and over parts of the surface becomevascular and help to form the placenta
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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villus vil·lus (vĭl'əs)
n. pl. vil·li (vĭl'ī)

  1. A minute projection arising from a mucous membrane, especially one of the vascular projections of the small intestine.
  2. Such a projection of the chorion that contributes to placental formation in mammals.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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villus   (vĭl'əs)  Pronunciation Key 
Plural villi (vĭl'ī)
A small projection on the surface of a mucous membrane, such as that of the small intestine.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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villus

in anatomy any of the small, slender, vascular projections that increase the surface area of a membrane. Important villous membranes include the placenta and the mucous-membrane coating of the small intestine. The villi of the small intestine project into the intestinal cavity, greatly increasing the surface area for food absorption and adding digestive secretions. The villi number about 6,000 to 25,000 per square inch (10 to 40 per square millimetre) of tissue. They are most prevalent at the beginning of the small intestine and diminish in number toward the end of the tract.

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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