pappus
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Related to pappus: Pappus of Alexandria
pap·pus
(păp′əs)n. pl. pap·pi (păp′ī)
A modified calyx, composed of scales, bristles, or featherlike hairs, in plants of the composite family, such as the dandelion and the thistle.
pap′pose (-ōs) adj.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
pappus
(ˈpæpəs)n, pl pappi (ˈpæpaɪ)
(Botany) a ring of fine feathery hairs surrounding the fruit in composite plants, such as the thistle; aids dispersal of the fruits by the wind
[C18: via New Latin, from Greek pappos grandfather, old man, old man's beard, hence: pappus, down]
ˈpappose, ˈpappous adj
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
pap•pus
(ˈpæp əs)n., pl. pap•pi (ˈpæp aɪ)
a downy, bristly, or other tuftlike appendage of the achene of certain plants, as the dandelion and thistle.
[1695–1705; < New Latin < Greek páppos down, literally, grandfather (taken as greybeard, white hairs, down)]
pap′pose (-oʊs) adj.
pap′pous (-əs) adj.
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Noun 1. [画像:pappus - calyx composed of scales or bristles or featherlike hairs in plants of the Compositae such as thistles and dandelions]pappus - calyx composed of scales or bristles or featherlike hairs in plants of the Compositae such as thistles and dandelions
calyx - (botany) the whorl of sepals of a flower collectively forming the outer floral envelope or layer of the perianth enclosing and supporting the developing bud; usually green
thistledown - pappus of a thistle consisting of silky featherlike hairs attached to the seed-like fruit of a thistle
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