Dictionary.com
definitions
  • synonyms

anther

[an-ther]
See more synonyms for anther on Thesaurus.com
noun Botany.
  1. the pollen-bearing part of a stamen.
Show More

Origin of anther

1545–55; < New Latin anthēra < Latin < Greek, feminine of anthērós flowery; see anthesis
Related formsan·ther·al, adjectivean·ther·less, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for anther

Historical Examples

  • Its body must be sufficiently large to come in contact with the anther.

    My Studio Neighbors

    William Hamilton Gibson

  • They consist usually of two parts, the Filament and Anther, not yet described.

  • The ovule is a part of every ovary just as the pollen is a part of every anther.

  • I suppose you were afraid I was going to give you anther whistle.

    Coniston, Complete

    Winston Churchill

  • Sometimes the stamen has no filament, and the anther is then said to be sessile.

    Field and Woodland Plants

    William S. Furneaux

British Dictionary definitions for anther

anther

noun
  1. the terminal part of a stamen consisting usually of two lobes each containing two sacs in which the pollen matures
Show More
Derived Formsantheral, adjective

Word Origin

C18: from New Latin anthēra, from Latin: a remedy prepared from flowers, from Greek, from anthēros flowery, from anthos flower
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

Word Origin and History for anther

n.

1550s, "medical extract of flowers," from French anthère, from Modern Latin anthera "a medicine extracted from a flower," from Greek anthera, fem. of antheros "flowery, blooming," from anthos "flower," from PIE root *andh- "to bloom" (cf. Sanskrit andhas "herb," Armenian and "field," Middle Irish ainder "young girl," Welsh anner "young cow"). Main modern sense attested by 1791.

Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
anther in Science

anther

[ăn′thər]
  1. The pollen-bearing part at the upper end of the stamen of a flower. Most anthers occur at the tip of a slender, stemlike filament and have two lobes. Each lobe contains two pollen sacs. When pollen matures in the pollen sacs, the lobes of the anthers burst open in the process known as dehiscence to release the pollen. See more at flower.
Show More
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.