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Webster's New World College Dictionary » operculum
operculum
operculum definition
oper·cu·lum (ō pʉr′kyo̵̅o̅ ləm, -kyə-)
noun pl. opercula -·la (-lə) or operculums -·lums
any of various covering flaps or lidlike structures in plants and animals; specif.,
- the bony covering protecting the gills of fishes: see fish,
- in many gastropods, the horny plate serving to close the shell when the animal is retracted
- the lid of spore cases in mosses
- the lid of a pitcher-shaped leaf
Etymology: ModL < L, lid, dim. < operire, to close, shut: for IE bases see ob- & aperture
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