1
[Medieval Latin]
: the round usually lead seal attached to a papal bull
2
[New Latin, from Latin]
: a hollow thin-walled rounded bony prominence
3
: a large vesicle or blister
Examples of bulla in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
By convention, the Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church, a senior cardinal appointed to oversee the transition, would destroy the ring and bulla in the presence of the College of Cardinals after announcing the pope’s passing.
—
Oscar Holland, CNN Money, 22 Apr. 2025
The camerlengo is also responsible for destroying the Fisherman's Ring and the lead bulla, which serve as seals for papal documents, according to Encyclopedia Brittanica.
—James Powel, USA Today, 22 Apr. 2025
So please, all the lefty-loosey and righty-tighty Venezuela zealots, spare us your bulla — and try using your noggins now.
—Tim Padgett, Sun Sentinel, 11 Aug. 2024
Officials confirmed his identification, describing the small artifact as a 250-year-old lead seal, or bulla, from a papal bull.
—Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 24 Apr. 2024
By extension, bulla came to refer to the official documents secured by such seals.
—Melissa Mohr, The Christian Science Monitor, 20 Feb. 2023
The word bill derives from bulla, which in medieval Latin referred to a seal on a document, such as wax stamped by a signet ring.
—Melissa Mohr, The Christian Science Monitor, 20 Feb. 2023
The air sac links onto an extension on the hyoid bone known as the hyoid bulla.
—Valerie Ross, Discover Magazine, 28 Nov. 2011
According to Rossella Tercatin of the Jerusalem Post, the fact that the bulla contains multiple impressions could indicate it was stamped by two people coordinating a transaction.
—Isis Davis-Marks, Smithsonian Magazine, 15 June 2021
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Oscar Holland, CNN Money, 22 Apr. 2025
The camerlengo is also responsible for destroying the Fisherman's Ring and the lead bulla, which serve as seals for papal documents, according to Encyclopedia Brittanica.
—James Powel, USA Today, 22 Apr. 2025
So please, all the lefty-loosey and righty-tighty Venezuela zealots, spare us your bulla — and try using your noggins now.
—Tim Padgett, Sun Sentinel, 11 Aug. 2024
Officials confirmed his identification, describing the small artifact as a 250-year-old lead seal, or bulla, from a papal bull.
—Aspen Pflughoeft, Miami Herald, 24 Apr. 2024
By extension, bulla came to refer to the official documents secured by such seals.
—Melissa Mohr, The Christian Science Monitor, 20 Feb. 2023
The word bill derives from bulla, which in medieval Latin referred to a seal on a document, such as wax stamped by a signet ring.
—Melissa Mohr, The Christian Science Monitor, 20 Feb. 2023
The air sac links onto an extension on the hyoid bone known as the hyoid bulla.
—Valerie Ross, Discover Magazine, 28 Nov. 2011
According to Rossella Tercatin of the Jerusalem Post, the fact that the bulla contains multiple impressions could indicate it was stamped by two people coordinating a transaction.
—Isis Davis-Marks, Smithsonian Magazine, 15 June 2021
Cite this Entry
“Bulla.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bulla. Accessed 2 May. 2025.
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