pilus

pilus

See also: píłuš and Piluś

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin pilus (“hair”). Doublet of pile.

Pronunciation

Noun

pilus (plural pili)

  1. (biology) A hair.
  2. (microbiology) A hairlike appendage found on the cell surface of many bacteria.
  3. (biochemistry) A bacterial protein that has several biochemical functions.

Synonyms

Derived terms

See also

Anagrams

Dutch

Noun

pilus m (plural pili, no diminutive)

  1. pilus (bacterial appendage)

Estonian

Noun

pilus

  1. inessive singular of pilu

Latin

Etymology 1

Etymology tree
Proto-Indo-European *pil-
Latin pilus

    Uncertain. Older sources reconstruct Proto-Indo-European *pilo- (“hair”), with Latin pilleus (“felt cap”), Ancient Greek πῖλος (pîlos, “wool or hair wrought into felt”), Proto-Slavic *pьlstь (“felt”) as cognates,[1][2] but this is no longer accepted.[3][4][5]

    Pronunciation

    Noun

    pilus m (genitive pilī); second declension

    1. (anatomy) A hair.
      Synonym: capillus
    2. (figuratively) An insignificant amount; iota; least amount
    Declension

    Second-declension noun.

    singular plural
    nominative pilus pilī
    genitive pilī pilōrum
    dative pilō pilīs
    accusative pilum pilōs
    ablative pilō pilīs
    vocative pile pilī
    Derived terms
    Descendants
    • Balkan Romance:
      • Aromanian: per
      • Megleno-Romanian: per
      • Istro-Romanian: per
      • Romanian: păr
    • Dalmatian:
    • Italo-Romance:
    • Insular Romance:
    • North Italian:
    • Gallo-Romance:
    • Occitano-Romance:
    • Ibero-Romance:
    • Borrowings:
      • → English: pile (fine underfur of certain animals)
      • → Ido: pilo

    References

    1. ^ Walde, Alois (1927), Julius Pokorny, editor, Vergleichendes Wörterbuch der indogermanischen Sprachen (in German), volume II, Berlin: de Gruyter, page 71
    2. ^ Pokorny, Julius (1959), Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch [Indo-European Etymological Dictionary] (in German), volume 3, Bern, München: Francke Verlag, page 830
    3. ^ Walde, Alois; Hofmann, Johann Baptist (1954), “pilus”, in Lateinisches etymologisches Wörterbuch (in German), 3rd edition, volume II, Heidelberg: Carl Winter, pages 304–305
    4. ^ Ernout, Alfred; Meillet, Antoine (1985), “pilus”, in Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue latine: histoire des mots‎[1] (in French), 4th edition, with additions and corrections of Jacques André, Paris: Klincksieck, published 2001, page 507b
    5. ^ De Vaan, Michiel (2008), “pilus”, in Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 465

    Etymology 2

    From pīlum (“javelin”).

    Pronunciation

    Noun

    pīlus m (genitive pīlī); second declension

    1. A maniple of the triāriī; a reserve company of veteran soldiers.
    Declension

    Second-declension noun.

    singular plural
    nominative pīlus pīlī
    genitive pīlī pīlōrum
    dative pīlō pīlīs
    accusative pīlum pīlōs
    ablative pīlō pīlīs
    vocative pīle pīlī
    Synonyms
    Derived terms

    Further reading

    • “pilus”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
    • “pilus”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891), An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
    • "pilus", in Charles du Fresne du Cange, Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
    • “pilus”, in Gaffiot, Félix (1934), Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
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