nectary

[ nek-tuh-ree ]

/ ˈnɛk tə ri /

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noun, plural nec·ta·ries.

Botany. an organ or part that secretes nectar.

Entomology. a cornicle (formerly thought to secrete honeydew).

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Origin of nectary

From the New Latin word nectarium, dating back to 1590–1600. See nectar, -y³

OTHER WORDS FROM nectary

nec·ta·ried, adjective

Words nearby nectary

nectariferous, nectarine, nectarivorous, nectarize, nectarous, nectary, nectopod, Ned, NEDC, Nedda, neddy

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use nectary in a sentence

Hence even the thin nectary is essentially, I infer, tripartite; hence its tendency to bifurcation at its top.
More Letters of Charles Darwin Volume II|Charles Darwin
But oddest of all is the crown of five-hooded nectaries above the corolla, each nectary enclosing an incurved horn.
Birds and All Nature, Vol. V, No. 3, March 1899|Various
Nectary a cylindrical tube attached to the corolla for half its length, mouth 10-toothed, containing 10 sessile anthers.
The Medicinal Plants of the Philippines|T. H. Pardo de Tavera
Anthers equal in number to the teeth of the nectary and inserted between them.
The Medicinal Plants of the Philippines|T. H. Pardo de Tavera

Smaller insects might creep into the nectary and sip without the intended fulfilment.
My Studio Neighbors|William Hamilton Gibson

British Dictionary definitions for nectary

nectary

/ (ˈnɛktərɪ) /

noun plural -ries

any of various glandular structures secreting nectar that occur in the flowers, leaves, stipules, etc, of a plant

any of the abdominal tubes in aphids through which honeydew is secreted

Derived forms of nectary

nectarial (nɛkˈtɛərɪəl), adjective

Word Origin for nectary

C18: from New Latin nectarium, from nectar

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