Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun The inner room or sanctuary of an ancient Greek or Roman temple, in which the statue of the god was situated.
  • noun In Byzantine architecture, the area of a centrally planned church in which the liturgy is performed.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun The room or chamber which formed the nucleus of an ancient Greek or Roman temple and contained the image of the deity, as distinguished from the additional rooms, porticos, etc., often combined with the cella to form the complete temple.
  • noun In anat., biol., and zoology, a cell; a cellula.
  • noun A hole or hollow formed at the foot of a waterfall or rapid by the continued action of the water.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun (Arch.) The part inclosed within the walls of an ancient temple, as distinguished from the open porticoes.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun architecture The part enclosed within the walls of an ancient temple, as distinguished from the open porticos.

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Latin; see kel- in Indo-European roots.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Latin

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