lunule

English

Orange lunules on a butterfly

The lunule of a shell

Etymology

Borrowed from French lunule, from Latin lūnula, diminutive of lūna (“moon”).

Noun

lunule (plural lunules)

1. Anything crescent-shaped; a crescent-shaped part or mark; a lunula or lune.
2. An area in front of the beak of many bivalve shells, sometimes shaped like a double crescent, but more often heart-shaped.

Derived terms

• lunulet
• lunulite

References

• “lunule”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.

French

Pronunciation

• Audio:

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Noun

lunule f (plural lunules)

1. lunule

Further reading

• “lunule”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Italian

Noun

lunule f

1. plural of lunula