perula
English
Alternative forms
Etymology
From Latin pērula, diminutive of pera (“wallet”), from Ancient Greek πήρα (pḗra). Compare French pérule.
Noun
perula (plural perulae)
- (botany) One of the scales of a leaf bud.
- (botany) A pouchlike portion of the perianth in certain orchids.
Part or all of this entry has been imported from the 1913 edition of Webster’s Dictionary, which is now free of copyright and hence in the public domain. The imported definitions may be significantly out of date, and any more recent senses may be completely missing.
(See the entry for “perula”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.)
Anagrams
Latin
Etymology 1
The diminutive form of pēra (“a bag”, “a wallet”), formed as pēra + -ula (suffix forming feminine diminutives).
Pronunciation
- (Classical Latin) IPA(key): [ˈpeː.rʊ.ɫa]
- (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): [ˈpɛː.ru.la]
Noun
pērula f (genitive pērulae); first declension
Declension
First-declension noun.
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | pērula | pērulae |
| genitive | pērulae | pērulārum |
| dative | pērulae | pērulīs |
| accusative | pērulam | pērulās |
| ablative | pērulā | pērulīs |
| vocative | pērula | pērulae |
References
- “pērŭla”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
Etymology 2
From pirum (“a pear”).
Alternative forms
Pronunciation
- (Classical Latin) IPA(key): [ˈpɛ.rʊ.ɫa]
- (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): [ˈpɛː.ru.la]
Noun
perula f (genitive perulae); first declension
- (Medieval Latin) pearl (shelly concretion, usually found in oysters, and often valued in a manner akin to semi-precious gems)
- 1272, an unknown source in The Natural History of Precious Stones and of the Precious Metals (1867), viii, page 269:
- Una Perla ad modum camahuti.
- A pearl in the manner of a cameo.
- 1272, an unknown source in The Natural History of Precious Stones and of the Precious Metals (1867), viii, page 269:
Declension
First-declension noun.
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | perula | perulae |
| genitive | perulae | perulārum |
| dative | perulae | perulīs |
| accusative | perulam | perulās |
| ablative | perulā | perulīs |
| vocative | perula | perulae |
Synonyms
- (pearl): margarīta (Classical)
Descendants
English pearl and its cognates are of uncertain etymology and may alternatively derive from Medieval Latin *pernula, a diminutive of perna (“haunch; a marine bivalve shaped like a leg of lamb”).
- Insular Romance:
- Sardinian: perèla, perèlla
- Italo-Dalmatian:
- Rhaeto-Romance:
- Gallo-Italic:
- Gallo-Romance:
- Occitano-Romance:
- Ibero-Romance:
Borrowings:
Ultimately from perula (or *pernula) but of uncertain intermediate borrowings:
References
- “perula”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- "perula", in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
- perula in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
- Jan Frederik Niermeyer, Mediae Latinitatis Lexicon Minus : Lexique Latin Médiéval–Français/Anglais : A Medieval Latin–French/English Dictionary, fascicle I (1976), page 794/2, “perula”