noun

• (botany) The part of the flower stalk (peduncle or pedicel) to which the floral parts are attached; a thalamus, a torus.
  "The form of the flower is highly dependent on the structure of the receptacle, even though this may not always be obvious externally. The receptacle is also called the floral axis, or it is sometimes called the torus, which may be translated as "swelling". These expressions per se imply that, although in the majority of cases the receptacle is greatly reduced, it is frequently thickened in a capitate form or broadened into a definitely disc-like shape."
• (botany) The part of the flower stalk (peduncle or pedicel) to which the floral parts are attached; a thalamus, a torus.
  "All flowers in a head share a common receptacle. The receptacle may be flat or convex. It may bear tiny scales called paleae. The paleae of a receptacle are referred to as chaff. Receptacles without paleae are said to be epaleate or naked. When the paleae are shed, they may leave either a smooth or a pitted receptacle. Occasionally, hairs, scales, or bristles may also be present on the receptacle."
• (phycology) A structure at the end of a branch of an alga containing conceptacles (reproductive organs).
  "Plants all marine, of an olive-brown or olive-green colour, becoming black on exposure to air; […] Frutification, tubercles contained in distinct receptacles, or embedded in the frond, and containing dark-coloured seeds surrounded with a pellucid limbus, which escape by a terminal pore."
• (zoology) An organ that receives and holds a secretion.