noun (plural flagella /-ˈjelə/)Biology
A slender threadlike structure, especially a microscopic whiplike appendage that enables many protozoa, bacteria, spermatozoa, etc., to swim.
More example sentences
- Development of the spermatid flagellum begins immediately after meiosis.
- This study was designed to learn how well the flagella of groups of bacteria might move fluid in a microscopic environment.
- Cilia and flagella are hairlike organelles extending from the cell surface.
early 19th century (denoting a whip or scourge): from Latin, diminutive of flagrum 'scourge'.
- More example sentences
- In most cases, this was confirmed by the observation of the flagellar axoneme in additional serial sections.
- If you knock out the flagella motor then the flagella is paralysed and flagellar secretion continues, but at reduced rate.
- The flagellar filament, the bacterial organelle of motility, is the smallest rotary propeller known.
Pronunciation: /fləˈjelər, ˈflajələr/adjective
Definition of flagellum in:
- The British & World English dictionary