imbricate
Americanadjective
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overlapping in sequence, as tiles or shingles on a roof.
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of, relating to, or resembling overlapping tiles, as decoration or drawings.
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Biology. overlapping like tiles, as scales or leaves.
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characterized by or as if by overlapping shingles.
verb (used with or without object)
adjective
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architect relating to or having tiles, shingles, or slates that overlap
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botany (of leaves, scales, etc) overlapping each other
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of imbricate
1650–60; < Late Latin imbricātus tiled with imbrices, shaped like such a tile or tiling, equivalent to imbric- (stem of imbrex ) imbrex + -ātus -ate 1
Vocabulary lists containing imbricate
"Against Nature," Vocabulary from the argument
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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.
See Examples For:
Sepals and petals colored alike, in three or more rows of three, imbricate.
From The Manual of the Botany of the Northern United States Including the District East of the Mississippi and North of North Carolina and Tennessee by Asa Gray
The leaf-sheath is glabrous, faintly and finely striate, distichously imbricate, compressed, somewhat keeled, outer margin ciliate, and bearded at the mouth.
From A Handbook of Some South Indian Grasses by K. Rangachari
Diagram of a flower of Linden, showing the calyx valvate and corolla imbricate in the bud, etc.
From The Elements of Botany For Beginners and For Schools by Asa Gray
The leaves are small and imbricate, and are borne on flattened branches, which are apt to be mistaken for the leaves.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 2, Slice 4 "Aram, Eugene" to "Arcueil" by Various
Involucral leaves much imbricate, concave, orbicular or ovate, incised at the apex; perianth ovate-subulate or fusiform, somewhat 3-keeled.
From The Manual of the Botany of the Northern United States Including the District East of the Mississippi and North of North Carolina and Tennessee by Asa Gray
Once home to a bustling trade route, the region bears the marks of Morocco’s imbricated faiths and folkways.
From New York Times ● Nov. 17, 2022
Space travel was imbricated with science fiction, with dreams of heroic courage that continue to fuel unscientific fantasies.
From Scientific American ● Aug. 24, 2020
Volutes, asportation, imbricated, Mnemosyne and phthisic are a few of the others.
From Washington Post ● Sep. 10, 2015
I’ve been rummaging in my skull the past few days for the skeleton key that might spring open the interlocking chambers of rap phenomenon Kendrick Lamar’s intricate, imbricated, and self-implicating new album.
From Slate ● Mar. 19, 2015
Corolla perfectly or not at all papilionaceous, sometimes nearly regular, imbricated in the bud, the upper or odd petal inside and enclosed by the others, Stamens 10 or fewer, commonly distinct, inserted on the calyx.
From The Manual of the Botany of the Northern United States Including the District East of the Mississippi and North of North Carolina and Tennessee by Asa Gray
The leaves are for the most part palmately-lobed, and the flowers are regular, consisting of five sepals, five imbricating petals, alternating with five glandules at their base, ten stamens and a beaked ovary.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 7 "Geoponici" to "Germany" by Various
Spikelets are closely imbricating in two series, sessile, solitary, the upper reduced to a small pedicel 1- to 2-flowered, the lowest few on the spike, imperfect, male or neuter.
From A Handbook of Some South Indian Grasses by K. Rangachari
In this spikelet the rachilla bears a number of glumes alternating and imbricating.
From A Handbook of Some South Indian Grasses by K. Rangachari
The inflorescence consists of a solitary spike with closely imbricating spikelets.
From A Handbook of Some South Indian Grasses by K. Rangachari
The leaf-sheath is smooth, imbricating, 1/2 to 1-1/2 inches long.
From A Handbook of Some South Indian Grasses by K. Rangachari
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