frond

[ frond ]

/ frɒnd /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR frond ON THESAURUS.COM

noun Botany.

an often large, finely divided leaf, especially as applied to the ferns and certain palms.

a leaflike expansion not differentiated into stem and foliage, as in lichens.

Nearby words

fromage frais, frome, fromentin, fromenty, fromm, frond, fronde, frondescence, frondeur, frondizi, frondose

Origin of frond

1745–55; < Latin frond- (stem of frōns) branch, bough, foliage

Related forms

frond·ed, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for frond

The outline of the frond is oblong, and the leaf tapers slightly towards the base as well as at the apex.
How to Know the Ferns|S. Leonard Bastin
If a woodlark stirred, he saw the shadow of its wing flit from frond to frond.
Pharais and The Mountain Lovers|Fiona Macleod
Where the frond is of a very large size they may be divided three times.
How to Know the Ferns|S. Leonard Bastin
The outline of the frond is lanceolate, and the colour of the foliage is dark green.
How to Know the Ferns|S. Leonard Bastin

The wings of the stalk widen out into a wedge-shaped base, which is sunken in a sinus between two basal auricles of the frond.
Beautiful Ferns|Daniel Cady Eaton

British Dictionary definitions for frond

frond

/ (frɒnd) /

noun

a large compound leaf, esp of a fern

the thallus of a seaweed or a lichen

Derived Forms

fronded, adjectivefrondless, adjective

Word Origin for frond

C18: from Latin frōns

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

Science definitions for frond

frond

[ frŏnd ]

A leaf of a fern or cycad, usually consisting of multiple leaflets.

A large, fanlike leaf of a palm tree.

A leaflike structure such as the thallus of a lichen or a seaweed.