Word.ws English Dictionary

utricle

/ˈjuː.tɹɪk.əl/

utricle noun: the larger of the two fluid-filled cavities forming part of the membranous labyrinth in the vertebrate inner ear (the other being the saccule) and into which the semicircular canals open. It contains hair cells and otoliths which send signals to the brain concerning the orientation of the head. Also the clipping of prostatic utricle.

Noun

utricle (plural utricles)

  1. The larger of the two fluid-filled cavities forming part of the membranous labyrinth in the vertebrate inner ear (the other being the saccule) and into which the semicircular canals open. It contains hair cells and otoliths which send signals to the brain concerning the orientation of the head.
  2. A dry indehiscent one-seeded fruit with thin membranous pericarp, similar to an achene and found in the beet and dock plants.

Also used as

utricle is also the clipping of prostatic utricle.

Forms of utricle

pluralutricles
alternative formutriculus

Origin of utricle

Borrowed from French utricule or Latin ūtriculus (“a small skin or leathern bottle”), diminutive of ūter (“a bag or bottle made of an animal's hide”). Doublet of utriculus.

Words formed from utricle

Phrases with utricle

Questions about utricle

What does utricle mean?
Utricle means the larger of the two fluid-filled cavities forming part of the membranous labyrinth in the vertebrate inner ear (the other being the saccule) and into which the semicircular canals open. It contains hair cells and otoliths which send signals to the brain concerning the orientation of the head.
What part of speech is utricle?
Utricle is a noun.
How do you pronounce utricle?
Utricle is pronounced /ˈjuː.tɹɪk.əl/.
What is the plural of utricle?
The plural of utricle is utricles.

Words near utricle in the dictionary

  1. Utrechtian
  2. Utrechtians
  3. Utrechtse Heuvelrug
  4. Utrera
  5. Utreras
  6. utricle
  7. utricles
  8. utricular
  9. utriculate
  10. utriculi
  11. utriculiferous

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: utricle (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Cite this entry: “utricle.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/utricle. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.