caruncle

Meaning

Noun

• A small, fleshy excrescence that is a normal part of an animal's anatomy.
• : the red prominence at the inner corner of the eye.
• A colored waxy or oily outgrowth near the micropyle of some seeds, attractive to ants which aid the seed's dispersal.

Origin

• Borrowed from Middle French caruncule, from Latin caruncula ("a little piece of flesh"), diminutive of carō. caruncula.