Pa*tel"la (?), n.; pl. Patellae (#). [L., a small pan, the kneepan, dim. of patina, patena, a pan, dish.]
1.
A small dish, pan, or vase.
2. Anat.
The kneepan; the cap of the knee.
<-- kneecap -->
3. Zool.
A genus of marine gastropods, including many species of limpets. The shell has the form of a flattened cone. The common European limpet (Patella vulgata) is largely used for food.
4. Bot.
A kind of apothecium in lichens, which is orbicular, flat, and sessile, and has a special rim not a part of the thallus.
© Webster 1913.