noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1. 1
   A Roman unit of liquid measure reckoned as the volume of 5/12 Roman ounce of wine, equivalent to about 11 mL. historical
2. 2
   Any of several tongue-shaped bony structures, especially that which forms the anterior border of the mandibular foramen.
3. 3
   Any small, fleshy tongue-shaped structure, such as in the anatomy of the brain or the human left lung, or in the whitefly vasiform orifice.

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin lingula (“tonguelet, small unit of volume”), from lingua (“tongue”) + -ula (“-ule: forming diminutives”).

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