catkin

[ kat-kin ]

nounBotany.

a spike of unisexual, apetalous flowers having scaly, usually deciduous bracts, as of a willow or birch.

Origin of catkin

First recorded in 1570–80, catkin is from the Dutch word katteken little cat (now obsolete). See cat, -kin

Also called ament.

Other words from catkin

cat·kin·ate [kat-kuh-neyt], /ˈkæt kəˌneɪt/, adjective

Words Nearby catkin

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use catkin in a sentence

catkin bearing nut trees, such as the walnut, have a refined structure that makes grafting difficult.
Northern Nut Growers Association Report of the Proceedings at the Thirty-Eighth Annual Meeting | Northern Nut Growers Association
Hardiness of catkin also varied greatly and rather consistently from year to year.
Northern Nut Growers Association Report of the Proceedings at the Thirty-Eighth Annual Meeting | Northern Nut Growers Association
It was here that the records of yields and catkin hardiness were valuable.
Northern Nut Growers Association Report of the Proceedings at the Thirty-Eighth Annual Meeting | Northern Nut Growers Association
Similarly the fruit of the mulberry represents a catkin-like inflorescence.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 3 | Various
catkin, bracted flowers situated along a slender and usually drooping stem.
Trees of the Northern United States | Austin C. Apgar

British Dictionary definitions for catkin

catkin

/ (ˈkætkɪn) /

noun

an inflorescence consisting of a spike, usually hanging, of much reduced flowers of either sex: occurs in birch, hazel, etc: Also called: ament

Origin of catkin

C16: from obsolete Dutch katteken kitten, identical in meaning with French chaton, German Kätzchen

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 catkin

catkin

[ kăt′kĭn ]

A long, thin, indeterminate inflorescence of tiny, petalless flowers growing on willows, birches, oaks, poplars, and certain other trees. The flowers on a catkin are either all male or all female. The female flowers are usually pollinated by the wind. Also called ament See illustration at inflorescence.

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