simple columnar epithelium pseudostratified columnar epithelium A simple columnar epithelium that looks stratified but is not, because its cells are arranged with their nuclei at different levels. FMA:45572 Pseudostratified epithelia function in secretion or absorption. If a specimen looks stratified but has cilia, then it is a pseudostratified ciliated epithelium, since stratified epithelia do not have cilia. UBERON:0010498 UMLS:C0836138 UMLS:C1514590 glandular in NCIT; we consider the two NCIT terms synonymous uberon