cotyledon
Americannoun
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the primary or rudimentary leaf of the embryo of seed plants.
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Anatomy. any of several lobules of the placenta.
noun
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a simple embryonic leaf in seed-bearing plants, which, in some species, forms the first green leaf after germination
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a tuft of villi on the mammalian placenta
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A leaf of the embryo of a seed-bearing plant. Most cotyledons emerge, enlarge, and become green after the seed has germinated. Cotyledons either store food for the growing embryo (as in monocotyledons) or absorb food that has been stored in the endosperm (as in other angiosperms) for eventual distribution to the growing parts of the embryo.
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Also called seed leaf
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See more at eudicotyledon monocotyledon
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of cotyledon
1535–45; < Latin: navelwort < Greek kotylēdṓn a plant (probably navelwort), literally, a cuplike hollow, derivative of kotýlē cup
Vocabulary lists containing cotyledon
Plants (Botany) - Middle School
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Plants (Botany) - High School
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In five days, the “baby” cotyledon leaves were up, with the “true” notched tomato leaves following at day 10.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 27, 2023
Swinger says the sprout, called a cotyledon, only exists for a few days and once it grew slightly the birds didn’t want to eat it anymore.
From Washington Times ● Jul. 17, 2016
As their name indicates, there is but one cotyledon or seed leaf, and the leaves from the first are alternate.
From Elements of Structural and Systematic Botany For High Schools and Elementary College Courses by Douglas Houghton Campbell
The end which almost touches the seed coat is caulicle, the other end belongs to the solitary cotyledon.
From The Elements of Botany For Beginners and For Schools by Asa Gray
But germination plainly shows that all except the lower end of it is cotyledon.
From The Elements of Botany For Beginners and For Schools by Asa Gray
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
