macul-, maculat-

(Latin: spot, mark, stain, blot, blemish, mesh; the original meaning of macula seems to have been, "a soiled spot, a spot to be cleaned")

Actitis macularia (s) (noun), Actitis macularias (pl)
A spotted sandpiper or a shorebird with a long slender beak that it uses to catch insects, worms, and soft mollusks in sand and in mud: During Mark's bird hike, he saw an Actitis macularia along the shoreline, catching insects, etc. with its long beak.
immaculate (adjective); more immaculate, most immaculate
1. A reference to something being impeccably clean; spotless: Shanna put on an immaculate apron before starting to work in her kitchen.
2. Descriptive of a person who is free of bad characteristics; pure: The saint had an immaculate reputation for her work among the poor and homeless people.
3. Relating to something which is free from faults or errors: The football team played an immaculate game, committing no misplays or fouls.
4. Referring to plants or animals which have no markings: The new bird Jim spotted in the forest had a smooth immaculate black body with no flecks, dapples, streaks, or stripes.
Conveying someone who is very clean and without any fault or bad behavior.
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lepra maculosus (s) (noun, lepra maculosa (pl))
A form of leprosy with pigmented cutaneous or skin areas: It has only been a 100 years or so since people diagnosed with lepra maculosa would have been banned to the leprosy colonies.
macula (s) (noun), maculae (pl)
A small spot or colored area: A macula on the skin is a small flat spot while the macula in an eye is a small spot in the retina.

The macula of the retina includes the light-sensitive layer of tissue at the back of the eye and usually, it is in the center of the retina.

When people read, light is focused on the macula where millions of cells change light into nerve signals which tell the brain what is being seen.

macula cerulea (s) (noun), maculae ceruleae (pl)
A bluish stain on the skin caused by the bites of fleas or lice located primarily on the chest, abdomen, thighs, and upper arms noticeable in light-skinned individuals: Maculae ceruleae are probably the result of altered blood pigments in infested individuals, or to an excretion product in the louse's saliva that converts bilirubin (a reddish-yellow bile pigment) to biliverdin (a green pigment occurring in bile).

The public health nurse noticed the presence of macula ceruleae among her street or homeless clients and reported this to the local health authorities.

macula retina (s) (noun), macula retinae (pl)
The oval areas of the sensory retina at the back of the eye balls: The center of macula retinae are the central fovea (small cup-shaped depressions or pits), which contain only retinal cones (light-sensitive cell types).
macular degeneration (s) (noun), macular degenerations (pl)
The decline or change of the central area of the retina of the eye, a part that is important in the visualization of fine details: Macular degeneration is the leading cause of visual impairment in people over the age of 50, and it can lead to the loss of the central vision, making it difficult to read or to do fine work; such as, threading a needle.

Usually macular degeneration doesn't cause blindness because only the central area of vision is affected.

Injury that causes macula degeneration usually decreases the ability to see straight ahead clearly and sometimes it makes it difficult to read, to drive, or to perform other daily activities that require good central vision.

Macular degeneration normally affects both eyes, either simultaneously or one eye then the other one later.

maculate (verb), maculates; maculated; maculating
1. To mark someone or something with a spot, a blotch, or a blemish: In order to avoid losing her clothing while she was in the hospital, Aurora maculated all of her clothing with a large 'X'.
2. To spot or to mark with changes in the color of skin that is neither raised nor depressed, or any anatomical structures having the form of a spot or stain: The disease caused the patient’s skin to maculate with dark brown spots in a distinctive pattern.
maculation (s) (noun), maculations (pl)
A pattern of spots or the condition of being spotted or stained, as on certain animals and plants: Leopards are examples of animals that have maculations as a part of their body fur patterns.
Spots as on a leopard.
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macule (s) (noun), macules (pl)
Discolored spot or patch on the skin, neither elevated nor depressed, of various colors, sizes, and shapes: Macules are completely flat and they can only be determined by visual inspections and not by touching.
maculomancy (s) (noun) (no plural)
Divination or fortune telling that is based on the stains or spots on a client or on something which belongs to the client: Jane used maculomancy in an effort to determine the future life of her customer.
maculopapular (s) (noun), maculopapulars (pl)
An eruption on the skin that involves marks or unusual growths on the skin and papules (small solid rounded bumps or pimples on the skin): A maculopapular rash is characterized by a flat, red area on the epidermis which consists of small bumps.
maculopathy (s) (noun), maculopathies (pl)
Retinal pathology of diseases that involve the rich optic nerve or the yellowish central area of the retina of the eye: Maculopathy concerns the medical research of diseases of an area at the center of the retina that is associated with highly sensitive and accurate vision.