pellicle
noun
Forms pellicles pellicula
- noun A thin skin or film.
- noun A cuticle, the hard protective outer layer of certain life forms.
- noun (mycology) The outermost layer of a mushroom; the skin of a mushroom cap; especially, a surface that is viscid and easily peels off.
- noun (cytology) A thin layer supporting the cell membrane in various protozoa.
- noun (biology, zymurgy) The growth on the surface of a liquid culture.
- noun (cooking) A skin or coating of proteins on the surface of meat to be smoked, improving the surface adhesion.
- noun (dentistry) A coating of glycoproteins from saliva that forms on teeth; it offers some protection to the enamel from bacterial acidity.
- noun (photography) The photosensitive emulsion of photographic film.
Etymology
From Latin pellicula, from pellis (“skin”). Doublet of pellicule.
Webster’s 1913
Etymology [L. pellicu, dim. of pellis skin: cf. F. pellicule.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “pellicle”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details