abnormal swelling of plant tissues caused by gall wasps. mites. nematodes. and various insects and less commonly by fungi or bacteria (contrast with burl).

Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary
gall (noun)
1.
a) - bile , especially bile obtained from an animal and used in the arts or medicine
b) something bitter to endure
c) bitterness of spirit - rancor
2.
brazen boldness coupled with impudent assurance and insolence temerity
gall (noun)
1.
a) a skin sore caused by chronic irritation
b) a cause or state of exasperation
2.
archaic - flaw
gall (verb)
transitive verb
1.
to fret and wear away by friction - chafe the loose saddle galled the horse's back the galling of a metal bearing
2.
intransitive verb
- irritate vex sarcasm galls her
1.
to become sore or worn by rubbing
2.
- seize
gall (noun)
an abnormal outgrowth of plant tissue usually due to insect or mite parasites or fungi and sometimes forming an important source of tannin - see gall wasp illustration
Related Articles:
gall (Wikipedia)
This article is about the abnormal growths in plants and animals. For other uses, see Gall (disambiguation).
A crown gall on Kalanchoe infected with Agrobacterium tumefaciens.
Galls can also appear on skeletal animals and in the fossil record. Two galls with perforations on a crinoid stem (Apiocrinites negevensis) from the Middle Jurassic of southern Israel.

Galls (from Latin galla, 'oak-apple') or cecidia (from Greek kēkidion, anything gushing out) are a kind of swelling growth on the external tissues of plants, fungi, or animals. Plant galls are abnormal outgrowths of plant tissues, similar to benign tumors or warts in animals. They can be caused by various parasites, from viruses, fungi and bacteria, to other plants, insects and mites. Plant galls are often highly organized structures so that the cause of the gall can often be determined without the actual agent being identified. This applies particularly to some insect and mite plant galls. The study of plant galls is known as cecidology.

In human pathology, a gall is a raised sore on the skin, usually caused by chafing or rubbing.

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