Byssus

2 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Byssus \Bys"sus\, n.; pl. E. {Byssuses}; L. {Byssi}.[L. byssus
     fine flax, fine linen or cotton, Gr. by`ssos .]
     [1913 Webster]
     1. A cloth of exceedingly fine texture, used by the ancients.
        It is disputed whether it was of cotton, linen, or silk.
        [Written also {byss} and {byssin}.]


        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. (Zool.) A tuft of long, tough filaments which are formed
        in a groove of the foot, and issue from between the valves
        of certain bivalve mollusks, as the {Pinna} and {Mytilus},
        by which they attach themselves to rocks, etc.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     3. (Bot.) An obsolete name for certain fungi composed of
        slender threads.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     4. Asbestus.
        [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  byssus
       n : tuft of strong filaments by which e.g. a mussel makes itself
           fast to a fixed surface [syn: {beard}]
       [also: {byssi} (pl)]