lyrate

American  

[lahy-reyt, -rit] / ˈlaɪ reɪt, -rɪt /

Also lyrated

adjective

1. Botany. (of a pinnate leaf ) divided transversely into several lobes, the smallest at the base.

2. Zoology. having the shape of a lyre, as the tail of certain birds.

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lyrate British  

/ ˈlaɪərɪt /

adjective

1. shaped like a lyre

2. (of leaves) having a large terminal lobe and smaller lateral lobes

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Other Word Forms

• lyrately adverb

Etymology

Origin of lyrate

From the New Latin word lyrātus, dating back to 1750–60. See lyre, -ate ¹

Example Sentences

Seed erect; radicle inferior.—Perennial herbs, with pinnate or lyrate leaves.

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 Gray, Asa

The long face, high crest for the horns, which are ringed, lyrate and more or less strongly angulated, and the moderately long tail, are the distinctive features of the hartebeests.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 2, Slice 2 "Anjar" to "Apollo" by Various

All looked at the horns as Hans spoke, and saw that these were full twenty inches in length, and somewhat like those of the springbok, but more irregularly lyrate.

From The Young Yagers A Narrative of Hunting Adventures in Southern Africa by Reid, Mayne

Turnip, tur′nip, n. a biennial plant, with lyrate hispid leaves, the upper part of the root becoming, esp. in cultivation, swollen and fleshy—cultivated as a culinary esculent, and for feeding cattle and sheep.—n.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 4 of 4: S-Z and supplements) by Various

Vilmorin mentions two varieties; one having entire leaves, the other with lyrate or lobed leaves; giving preference, however, to the one with entire leaves.

From The Field and Garden Vegetables of America Containing Full Descriptions of Nearly Eleven Hundred Species and Varietes; With Directions for Propagation, Culture and Use. by Burr, Fearing