filamentary


fil·a·ment

F0116700 (fĭl′ə-mənt)n.1. A fine or very thin thread or fiber: filaments of cloth; filaments of flax.2. A slender or threadlike structure or part, especially:a. A fine wire that is heated electrically to produce light in an incandescent lamp.b. The stalk that bears the anther in the stamen of a flower.c. A chainlike series of cells, as in many algae.d. A long thin cellular structure characteristic of many fungi, usually having multiple nuclei and often divided by septa.e. Any of various long thin celestial objects or phenomena, such as a solar filament.
[New Latin fīlāmentum, from Late Latin fīlāre, to spin, from Latin fīlum, thread; see gwhī- in Indo-European roots.]
fil′a·men′tous (-mĕn′təs), fil′a·men′ta·ry (-mĕn′tə-rē, -mĕn′trē) adj.