Nucellus
/njuːˈsɛləs/noun
The central tissue of a plant ovule that surrounds and nourishes the developing embryo sac.
Did you know?The word comes from Latin nux, “nut,” because early botanists compared the ovule’s protected inner structure to a tiny nut concealed inside its covering.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*newk-
“A nut or fruit with a hard shell”
Proto-Italic
Proto-Italic
*nōks
“Nut”
Classical Latin
Latin
nux; nucis
“Nut; the hard-shelled fruit”
Late Latin
Latin
nucellus
“A little nut, formed as a diminutive of nux”
17th Century
New Latin
nucellus
“The inner tissue of a plant ovule”
Modern English
English
nucellus
“The tissue surrounding the embryo sac in a seed plant’s ovule”