lemma Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun a subsidiary proposition that is assumed to be true in order to prove another proposition
  2. noun the lower and stouter of the two glumes immediately enclosing the floret in most Gramineae
    flowering glume.
  3. noun the heading that indicates the subject of an annotation or a literary composition or a dictionary entry

WordNet

Lem"ma noun
Etymology
L. lemma, Gr. anything received, an assumption or promise taken for granted, fr. to take, assume, Cf. Syllable.
Wordforms
plural L Lemmata E Lemmas
Definitions
  1. A preliminary or auxiliary proposition demonstrated or accepted for immediate use in the demonstration of some other proposition, as in mathematics or logic.

Webster 1913