[tu.ber.cle] n [L tuberculum, dim. of tuber] (1578) 1: a small knobby prominence or excrescence esp. on a plant or animal: nodule: as a: a protuberance near the head of a rib that articulates with the transverse process of a vertebra b: any of several prominences in the central nervous system c: nodule b
2: a small abnormal discrete lump in the substance of an organ or in the skin; esp: the specific lesion of tuberculosis