bulb
bulb Lexical Profile
bulb Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A glass envelope containing a vacuum or inert gas and a light-emitting element, designed to produce illumination; a lightbulb.
"She climbed the stepladder to replace the burnt-out bulb in the kitchen ceiling fixture."
A rounded, fleshy underground storage organ of certain plants, such as onions or tulips, that enables survival and dormancy during adverse weather conditions.
"We spent the cool autumn afternoon planting daffodil bulbs so they would bloom beautifully in early spring."
Any structure or part resembling a rounded swelling, such as the expanded reservoir at the base of a thermometer.
"The red alcohol expanded upward from the bulb of the thermometer as the room temperature slowly rose."
Word Origin & Etymology
From Latin 'bulbus' (onion, bulb), which derives from Ancient Greek 'bolbós', referring to any plant with a round underground swelling.
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.