Follicle \Fol"li*cle\, n. [L. folliculus a small bag, husk, pod, dim of follis bellows, an inflated ball, a leathern money bag, perh. akin to E. bellows: cf. F. follicule. Cf. 2d Fool.]

1. (Bot.) A simple podlike pericarp which contains several seeds and opens along the inner or ventral suture, as in the peony, larkspur and milkweed.

2. (Anat.)
   (a) A small cavity, tubular depression, or sac; as, a hair follicle.
   (b) A simple gland or glandular cavity; a crypt.
   (c) A small mass of adenoid tissue; as, a lymphatic follicle.

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)