Khalazion

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A painless, firm lump that develops within the eyelid when an oil-producing gland becomes blocked and swollen over time
2. A chronic, usually painless swelling of the eyelid caused by a blocked meibomian gland that forms a hard bump
3. A slow-developing cyst in the upper or lower eyelid, resulting from obstruction of a tiny oil gland and often mistaken for a stye

Etymology: In Greek, "khalaza" meant hail, the frozen pellet falling from the sky, and "khalazion" is its diminutive, a little hailstone. Medical writers used the term for the firm, round lump that forms slowly on the eyelid, which resembles a hailstone or a lentil lodged under the skin. English took the term as a medical word straight from Greek, so most modern texts spell it "chalazion," which is the same word in a different transliteration. The same Greek root gave English "chalaza," the name for the twisted cords that anchor the yolk inside an egg.