calyx

[ key-liks, kal-iks ]
See synonyms for calyx on Thesaurus.com
noun,plural ca·lyx·es, cal·y·ces [kal-uh-seez, key-luh-]. /ˈkæl əˌsiz, ˈkeɪ lə-/.
  1. Botany. the outermost group of floral parts; the sepals.

  2. Anatomy, Zoology. a cuplike part.

Origin of calyx

1
First recorded in 1665–75; from Latin, from Greek kályx “cup, calyx (of a flower), husk, pod, covering,” akin to kalýptein “to veil, cover”
  • Also ca·lix .

Other words from calyx

  • cal·y·cate [kal-i-keyt], /ˈkæl ɪˌkeɪt/, adjective

Words Nearby calyx

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use calyx in a sentence

  • Alismace, distinguished by possessing barren and fertile flowers, with a three-leaved calyx and three coloured petals.

  • The calyx is composed of five sepals, the corolla of four or five lobes, and the stamens are attached to the corolla.

    The Sea Shore | William S. Furneaux
  • The umbels are sessile or nearly so, the flowers have no calyx, and the fruit has five prominent ridges.

    The Sea Shore | William S. Furneaux

British Dictionary definitions for calyx

calyx

/ (ˈkeɪlɪks, ˈkælɪks) /


nounplural calyxes or calyces (ˈkælɪˌsiːz, ˈkeɪlɪ-)
  1. the sepals of a flower collectively, forming the outer floral envelope that protects the developing flower bud: Compare corolla

  2. any cup-shaped cavity or structure, esp any of the divisions of the human kidney (renal calyx) that form the renal pelvis

Origin of calyx

1
C17: from Latin, from Greek kalux shell, from kaluptein to cover, hide

Derived forms of calyx

  • calycate (ˈkælɪˌkeɪt), adjective

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for calyx

calyx

[ lĭks, kălĭks ]


  1. The sepals of a flower considered as a group. The calyx is the outermost whorl of a flower. See more at sepal.

The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.