palea

American  

[pay-lee-uh] / ˈpeɪ li ə /

noun

• paleae
  plural

1. a chafflike scale or bract.

2. the scalelike, membranous organ in the flowers of grasses that is situated upon a secondary axis in the axil of the flowering glume and envelops the stamens and pistil.

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palea British  

/ ˈpeɪlɪə /

noun

1. the inner of two bracts surrounding each floret in a grass spikelet Compare lemma 1

2. any small membranous bract or scale

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palea Scientific  

/ pā′lēə /

• paleae
  plural

1. The inner or upper of the two bracts enclosing one of the small flowers within a grass spikelet.

2. The chaffy scales on the receptacle of a flower head in a plant of the composite family.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• paleaceous
  adjective
• paleate
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• paleae
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of palea

1745–55; < New Latin, special use of Latin palea chaff

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

palea paleae

Floral glume extending beyond the grain, 5–7 nerved, 6–9 mm. long, grain rounded on the back, shape of a shallow boat, 6.5 mm. long, palea thin with comb-like teeth on the margins.

From Seeds of Michigan Weeds Bulletin 260, Michigan State Agricultural College Experiment Station, Division of Botany, March, 1910 by W. J. (William James) Beal

In the axil of each lemma, and usually concealed by it, is a smaller bract, the palea, and between the lemma and the palea is a single flower.

From The Plants of Michigan Simple Keys for the Identification of the Native Seed Plants of the State by Henry Allan Gleason

The fourth glume is thin, hyaline, oblong-lanceolate, obtuse, paleate, and bisexual; palea lanceolate, narrow, two-toothed at the apex, with deep purple anthers and stigmas of the same colour.

From A Handbook of Some South Indian Grasses by K. Rangachari

The third glume is similar to the second glume, 5-nerved, paleate, empty; palea is hyaline oblong, acute.

From A Handbook of Some South Indian Grasses by K. Rangachari

The fourth glume is coriaceous or crustaceous, plano-convex, bisexual, 5-nerved and paleate; palea is as long as the glume.

From A Handbook of Some South Indian Grasses by K. Rangachari

The paleae open for a short period for stigma to be dusted, and then close again, and such travelling down would take place under protection.

From More Letters of Charles Darwin — Volume 2 by Sir Francis Darwin

Ears expel anthers when kept in water in room; but the paleae apparently do not open and expose stigma; but the stigma could easily be artificially impregnated.

From More Letters of Charles Darwin — Volume 2 by Sir Francis Darwin

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