connective tissue

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

• noun Tissue arising chiefly from the embryonic mesoderm that is characterized by a highly vascular matrix and includes collagenous, elastic, and reticular fibers, adipose tissue, cartilage, and bone. It forms the supporting and connecting structures of the body.

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

• noun anatomy A type of tissue found in animals whose main function is binding other tissue systems (such as muscle to skin) or organs and consists of the following three elements: cells, fibers and a ground substance (or extracellular matrix).

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

• noun tissue of mesodermal origin consisting of e.g. collagen fibroblasts and fatty cells; supports organs and fills spaces between them and forms tendons and ligaments