Etymology

utricle

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Today it 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. Full definition →

French utricule ← Latin ūtriculus
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The story

  1. Latin · borrowed fromūtriculus“a small skin or leathern bottle”
  2. French · borrowed fromutricule
  3. English todayutricle

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 from the same roots

Latinūtriculus all →

utriculoid

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.