n.
Pronunciation: skü- ' te-l ə m, skyü-
Function: noun
Inflected Form: plural -la \ -l ə \
Etymology: New Latin, diminutive of Latin scutum shield
Date: 1819
1 : a hard plate or scale (as on the thorax of an insect or the tarsus of a bird)
2 : the shield-shaped cotyledon of a monocotyledon (as a grass)
– scu · tel · lar \ -l ə r \ adjective