amˈpu̇lə, -ˈpə-, aam- noun
( plural ampul·lae -ˌlē, -ī)
Etymology: Middle English, from Old English, from Latin, diminutive of amphora — more at amphora
1. : a flask of glass or earthenware having a somewhat globular body and two handles and used especially by the ancient Romans to hold ointment, perfume, or wine
2.
a. : a vessel in which holy oil is kept
the ampulla ordered for the coronation of Charles II — L.G.W.Legg
b. : a cruet in which wine or water for ecclesiastical use is kept
3.
[New Latin, from Latin]
a. : one of the small bladders attached to the submerged parts of plants of Utricularia and related genera
b. : one of the flask-shaped swellings on the hyphae of certain fungi
4.
[New Latin, from Latin]
: a flasklike dilatation or sac: as
a. : the dilatation containing a patch of sensory epithelium at one end of each semicircular canal of the ear
b. : one of the muscular vesicles of the water vascular system of echinoderms by the contraction of which the suckers are protruded
c. : one of the dilatations of the lactiferous tubules of the mammary glands that serve as reservoirs for milk
d. : the middle portion of the fallopian tube