Nodule

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈnɒdjuːl/

Definitions

1. A small, rounded lump or mass of tissue, mineral, or other material, often found in the body or in rocks
2. A small, rounded protuberance that can develop in biological tissues or geological substrates, often containing various materials
3. A small, discrete mass that may form in living tissues or geological formations, typically consisting of different substances

Etymology: Before it named a tiny lump in a plant root or a bump on the body, "nodulus" was a Latin diminutive meaning "small knot." It was formed from "nodus," "knot," with the diminutive suffix "-ulus," which gives English words like "globule" and "particle." English took the Latin form directly as a learned borrowing, so "nodule" kept its diminutive shape rather than arriving through everyday speech. The English word is built from the Latin root "nod-" plus the "-ule" ending, the same suffix found in "module" and "capsule." Surface analysis makes it look like "node" with a small-thing ending, and that is a fair way to read it, since the two words share the same root. Both descend from the Latin "nodus," so "node" and "nodule" are close relatives rather than one derived from the other.

Synonyms: node, lump, growth

Antonyms: hole, cavity