What does "cotyledon" mean?

Each of the patches of villi on the foetal chorion in the placenta of ruminants and some other mammals.

What is a synonym for "cotyledon"?

Common synonyms include: blade, bract, flag, frond, leaf, leaflet.

Pronounced //ˌkɑt.əˈliː.dən//.

//ˌkɑt.əˈliː.dən// noun

noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Noun

1
Each of the patches of villi on the foetal chorion in the placenta of ruminants and some other mammals.
"Forced to apply animal findings to humans, his human womb also had cotyledons like a dog's."
2
embryonic leaf in seed-bearing plants wordnet
3
The leaf of the embryo of a seed-bearing plant; after germination it becomes the first leaves of the seedling.

"Forced to apply animal findings to humans, his human womb also had cotyledons like a dog's."

From Latin cotylēdōn, from Ancient Greek κοτυληδών (kotulēdṓn, “cup-shaped cavity”), from κοτύλη (kotúlē, “cup”).

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.