vorticellae

Variant of vorticella

noun pl. vorticellae

any of a genus (Vorticella) of one-celled ciliates living in water, with a bell-shaped body on a thin, contractile stem serving as a holdfast

Origin: ModL, dim. < L vortex: see vortex

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
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