achene
or a·kene
[ey-keen, uh-keen]
- any small, dry, hard, one-seeded, indehiscent fruit.
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Origin of achene
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for achene
Historical Examples of achene
Name from , a bug, and , resemblance; from the form of the achene.
Fruit usually an achene, compressed or 3–4-angled or -winged.
Calyx 6-parted or -cleft, colored, persistent about the achene.
Compared with U. dioica, this achene is thinner and shorter.
Seeds of Michigan WeedsW. J. (William James) Beal
Achene triangular, pointed with the persistent base of the style.
achene
akene
- a dry one-seeded indehiscent fruit with the seed distinct from the fruit wall. It may be smooth, as in the buttercup, or feathery, as in clematis
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Word Origin for achene
C19: from New Latin achaenium that which does not yawn or open, from a- 1 + Greek khainein to yawn
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
achene
- A small, dry, one-seeded fruit in which the seed sits free inside the hollow fruit, attached only by the stem of the ovule. Achenes are indehiscent (they do not split open when ripe). The fruits of the sunflower and elm are achenes.
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The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
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