keep a civil tongue in one's head. Speak politely, as in The teacher won't allow swearing; she says we must keep a civil tongue in our heads. This expression uses tongue in the sense of a manner of speaking, a usage dating from the 1400s. An early cautionary version was Keep a good tongue in your head, lest it hurt your teeth (1595). See also: civil, head, keep, tongue. n. a civil servant.
Phospholipids serve a major function in the cells of all organisms: they form the phospholipid membranes that surround the cell and intracellular organelles such as the mitochondria. The cell membrane is a fluid, semi-permeable bilayer that separates the cell's contents from the environment, see animation below.hospholipids serve a major function in the cells of all organisms: they form the phospholipid membranes that surround the cell and intracellular organelles such as the mitochondria. The cell membrane is a fluid, semi-permeable bilayer that separates the cell's contents from the environment, see animation below.
Functions of the lipid bilayer [edit]. The most important property of the lipid bilayer is that it is a highly impermeable structure. Impermeable simply means that it does not allow molecules to freely pass across it. Only water and gases can easily pass through the bilayer.ipids are fats, like oil, that are insoluble in water because of its long hydrophobic tails. The hydrophobic interactions among several phospholipids and glycolipids, a certain structure called lipid bilayer or bimolecular sheet is favored.