pollen

American  

[pol-uhn] / ˈpɒl ən /

noun

1. the fertilizing element of flowering plants, consisting of fine, powdery, yellowish grains or spores, sometimes in masses.

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verb (used with object)

1. to pollinate.

pollen ¹ British  

/ pəˈlɪnɪk, ˈpɒlən /

noun

1. a fine powdery substance produced by the anthers of seed-bearing plants, consisting of numerous fine grains containing the male gametes

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Pollen ² British  

/ ˈpɒlən /

noun

1. Daniel. 1813–96, New Zealand statesman, born in Ireland: prime minister of New Zealand (1876)

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pollen Scientific  

/ pŏl′ən /

1. Powdery grains that contain the male reproductive cells of most plants. In gymnosperms, pollen is produced by male cones or conelike structures. In angiosperms, pollen is produced by the anthers at the end of stamens in flowers. Each pollen grain contains a generative cell, which divides into two nuclei (one of which fertilizes the egg), and a tube cell, which grows into a pollen tube to conduct the generative cell or the nuclei into the ovule. The pollen grain is the male gametophyte generation of seed-bearing plants. In gymnosperms, each pollen grain also contains two sterile cells (called prothallial cells), thought to be remnants of the vegetative tissue of the male gametophyte.

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pollen Cultural  

1. The male sex cells in plants. In flowering plants, pollen is produced in thin filaments in the flower called stamens. (See fertilization and pollination.)

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Discover More

When pollen is carried into the air by the wind, it frequently causes allergic reactions (see allergy) in humans.

Other Word Forms

• pollenless adjective
• pollenlike adjective
• pollinic adjective
• pollinical adjective
• unpollened adjective

Etymology

Origin of pollen

1515–25; < New Latin, special use of Latin: fine flour, mill dust

Example Sentences

While some trees are felled for infrastructure, officials justify removing others to tackle seasonal pollen allergies that are especially acute in spring.

From Barron's

Fossil pollen and remains of grass-eating animals such as hippos indicate that savanna plants dominated the region tens of thousands of years ago, rather than dense forests.

From Science Daily

They also had to wear masks to protect themselves from the large amount of pollen circulating.

From BBC

Each peat layer contained traces of past conditions, including charcoal fragments, pollen, and remains of plants and microbes.

From Science Daily

Yet the glass fiber filters used to trap airborne particles also preserved traces of DNA from pollen, spores, and other microscopic biological material.

From Science Daily

Related Words

• antigen
• dander
• irritant
• ragweed