floret

American  

[flawr-it, flohr-] / ˈflɔr ɪt, ˈfloʊr- /

noun

1. a small flower.

2. Botany. one of the closely clustered small flowers that make up the flower head of a composite flower, as the daisy.

3. one of the tightly clustered divisions of a head of broccoli or cauliflower.

4. Also florette spun silk obtained from floss.

5. Printing. flower.

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floret British  

/ ˈflɔːrɪt /

noun

1. a small flower, esp one of many making up the head of a composite flower

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floret Scientific  

/ flôr′ĭt /

1. A small or reduced flower, especially one that is part of a larger inflorescence, such as those of the grasses and plants of the composite family.

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Etymology

Origin of floret

1350–1400; Middle English flouret < Old French florete, diminutive of flor flower; see -et

Example Sentences

He did exactly that one February day when he spied a single, backlit floret of a faded Hydrangea paniculata that was still hanging on.

From Seattle Times • Aug. 11, 2022

The direct application of heat to the outside of each floret creates an actual chemical change, as the sugars and amino acids inside the vegetable rearrange themselves.

From New York Times • May 4, 2022

This recipe liberates broccoli from the floret and instead has you finely chop both the frilly tops and sturdy stem.

From Washington Post • Feb. 11, 2022

The student, Trevon Grimes, had a temple-fade haircut so bushy on top that classmates compared his head to a broccoli floret.

From The New Yorker • Jan. 1, 2017

So widely do the anthers diverge, that pollen must often drop on the stigma of a neighboring floret, and quite as often a flower is likely to be self-fertilized through the curvature of the filaments.

From Wild Flowers An Aid to Knowledge of Our Wild Flowers and Their Insect Visitors by Blanchan, Neltje