hilum

American  

[hahy-luhm] / ˈhaɪ ləm /

noun

plural

hila

1. Botany.

   1. the mark or scar on a seed produced by separation from its funicle or placenta.

   2. the nucleus of a granule of starch.

2. Mycology. a mark or scar on a spore at the point of attachment to the spore-bearing structure.

3. Anatomy. the region at which the vessels, nerves, etc., enter or emerge from a part.

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hilum British  

/ ˈhaɪləm /

noun

1. botany

   1. a scar on the surface of a seed marking its point of attachment to the seed stalk (funicle)

   2. the nucleus of a starch grain

2. a deep fissure or depression on the surface of a bodily organ around the point of entrance or exit of vessels, nerves, or ducts

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hilum Scientific  

/ hī′ləm /

plural

hila

1. A mark or scar on a seed, such as a bean, showing where it was formerly attached to the plant. The hilum indicates the point of attachment of the funiculus.

2. A depression or opening through which nerves, ducts, or blood vessels pass in an organ or a gland, as in the medial aspect of the lungs or the kidneys .

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Other Word Forms

• hilar adjective

Etymology

Origin of hilum

1650–60; < New Latin; Latin: little thing, trifle; see nil

Example Sentences

The arteries, veins, and nerves that supply the kidney enter and exit at the renal hilum.

From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022

Blood enters and exits the kidney at the renal hilum, and the renal blood supply starts with the branching of the aorta into the renal arteries.

From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022

Blood enters and exits the kidney at the renal hilum, and the renal blood supply starts with the branching of the aorta into the renal arteries.

From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022

The medial surface of each lung contains an area known as the hilum where vessels enter and exit.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015

Rhaphe, the line or ridge which runs from the hilum to the chalaza in anatropous and amphitropous seeds.

From The Elements of Botany For Beginners and For Schools by Gray, Asa