flocculent

American  

[flok-yuh-luhnt] / ˈflɒk jə lənt /

adjective

1. like a clump or tuft of wool.

2. covered with a soft, woolly substance.

3. consisting of or containing loose woolly masses.

4. flocky.

5. Chemistry. consisting of flocs and floccules.

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flocculent British  

/ ˈflɒkjʊlənt /

adjective

1. like wool; fleecy

2. chem aggregated in woolly cloudlike masses

   a flocculent precipitate

3. biology covered with tufts or flakes of a waxy or wool-like substance

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Other Word Forms

• flocculence
  noun
• flocculency
  noun
• flocculently
  adverb

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Etymology

Origin of flocculent

First recorded in 1790–1800; flocc(us) + -ulent

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Explanation

If something's puffy or has tufts, you can describe it as flocculent. Sheep are flocculent before they're sheared, and much less flocculent afterward. The unusual adjective flocculent basically means "fluffy," although it's specific to the way wool is fluffy — in tufts. Your carefully styled hair might be flocculent after a drive in a convertible, for example. The root is the Latin word floccus, which means "lock of hair" or "tuft of wool."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

flocculent

They invariably come laden with words that seem meant to prove his vocabulary is bigger than yours: flocculent, crapulent, caducous, anaglypta, mephitic, velutinous.

From New York Times ● Oct. 1, 2020

“A vast, flocculent cloud darkened and devitalized the city, mimicking the family mood like weather does in memories.”

From New York Times ● Apr. 11, 2019

D. Leaves flocculent or cobwebby or glaucous below when fully grown.

From Manual of American Grape-Growing by U. P. Hedrick

He also obtained a flocculent precipitate which later became granular and showed under the microscope forms like the starfish, and discs with undulated borders.

From The Mechanism of Life by Stéphane Leduc

The particles when magnified appear very fine and flocculent.

From Paint Technology and Tests by Henry A. Gardner

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