Basidium

/bəˈsɪdiəm/ noun

A club-shaped cell or structure in basidiomycete fungi that produces and bears spores, typically four spores, on its outer surface.

From Latin 'basis' (base) plus a diminutive/shape suffix suggesting 'little club.' The term was coined in the 1800s by mycologists observing the distinctive club shapes under microscopes.

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