| / English Dictionary |
MACULA
| Pronunciation (US): |  | (GB): | |
Irregular inflected form: maculae
I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
A patch of skin that is discolored but not usually elevated; caused by various diseases
Synonyms:
macula; macule
Classified under:
Hypernyms ("macula" is a kind of...):
dapple; fleck; maculation; patch; speckle; spot (a small contrasting part of something)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "macula"):
freckle; lentigo (a small brownish spot (of the pigment melanin) on the skin)
liver spot (a type of skin disease that causes brown spots on the skin)
plague spot (a spot on the skin characteristic of the plague)
Holonyms ("macula" is a part of...):
cutis; skin; tegument (a natural protective body covering and site of the sense of touch)
Derivation:
maculate (spot, stain, or pollute)
maculate (make dirty or spotty, as by exposure to air; also used metaphorically)
Sense 2
Meaning:
A small yellowish central area of the retina that is rich in cones and that mediates clear detailed vision
Synonyms:
macula; macula lutea; macular area; yellow spot
Classified under:
Nouns denoting body parts
Hypernyms ("macula" is a kind of...):
area; region (a part of an animal that has a special function or is supplied by a given artery or nerve)
Holonyms ("macula" is a part of...):
retina (the innermost light-sensitive membrane covering the back wall of the eyeball; it is continuous with the optic nerve)
Sense 3
Meaning:
A cooler darker spot appearing periodically on the sun's photosphere; associated with a strong magnetic field
Synonyms:
macula; sunspot
Classified under:
Nouns denoting natural phenomena
Hypernyms ("macula" is a kind of...):
dapple; fleck; maculation; patch; speckle; spot (a small contrasting part of something)
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