sessile adjective. ['sɛsʌɪl, 'sɛsɪl] E18.
[Latin sessilis, from sess- pa. ppl stem of sedere SIT verb: see -ILE.]
1. Botany, Zoology, & Medicine. Attached directly to a surface; having no stalk, neck, etc. Also, (of a plant) having stalkless fruit. E18.
sessile oak the durmast oak, Quercus petraea, which has stalkless acorns
2. Chiefly Biology. Sedentary, living fixed to one spot; immobile, fixed. M19.
■ M. Webb People remained in a sessile state over tea for a long time. Nature The more important sessile components of the coral reef ecosystem..corals and sponges.
3. Crystallography. Of a dislocation in a crystal: unable to migrate through the lattice; fixed. M20.

■ sessility [-'sɪlɪti] noun (chiefly Biology) sessile character or condition E20.

[TahlilGaran] English Dictionary ▲