cleistogamous

[ klahy-stog-uh-muhs ]

/ klaɪˈstɒg ə məs /

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adjective Botany.

pertaining to or having pollination occurring in unopened flowers.

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Also cleis·to·gam·ic

[klahy-stuh-gam-ik]. /ˌklaɪ stəˈgæm ɪk/.

Compare chasmogamous.

Origin of cleistogamous

First recorded in 1880–85; cleisto- + -gamous

OTHER WORDS FROM cleistogamous

cleis·tog·a·mous·ly, cleis·to·gam·i·cal·ly, adverbcleis·tog·a·my, nounnon·cleis·to·gam·ic, adjectivenon·cleis·tog·a·mous, adjective

Words nearby cleistogamous

-cleisis, Cleisthenes, cleisto-, cleistocarp, cleistocarpous, cleistogamous, cleistogamy, cleistothecium, Cleland, clem, clemastine fumarate

How to use cleistogamous in a sentence

Such plants are technically called Cleistogamous, and are all self-fertilizing.
The plant-lore and garden-craft of Shakespeare|Henry Nicholson Ellacombe
The cleistogamous, and not the brilliant flowers: the victory is with ugliness, and not with beauty.
The Contemporary Review, Volume 36, December 1879|Various
Cleistogamous Flowers, that is, in those which are fertilized in the flower-bud, while still unopened.
The Elements of Botany|Asa Gray
In other cases precautions are taken to prevent cross-fertilisation, as in the numerous cleistogamous or closed flowers.
Darwinism (1889)|Alfred Russel Wallace

The other species are all propagated by their cleistogamous flowers.
The Making of Species|Douglas Dewar

Scientific definitions for cleistogamous

cleistogamous

[ klī-stŏg′ə-məs ]

Of or relating to a flower that does not open and is self-pollinated in the bud. The fertile flowers of the violet are inconspicuous and cleistogamous, while the plant's more familiar showy flowers are usually infertile.