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Synonyms

patulous

American  
[pach-uh-luhs] / ˈpætʃ ə ləs /

adjective

  1. open; gaping; expanded.

  2. Botany.

    1. spreading, as a tree or its boughs.

    2. spreading slightly, as a calyx.

    3. bearing the flowers loose or dispersed, as a peduncle.


patulous British  
/ ˈpætjʊləs /

adjective

  1. botany spreading widely or expanded

    patulous branches

  2. rare gaping

"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

Other Word Forms

  • patulously adverb
  • patulousness noun

Etymology

Origin of patulous

First recorded in 1610–20, patulous is from the Latin word patulus standing wide-open. See patent, -ulous

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.

Cones from 5 to 8 cm. long, short-pedunculate, erect or patulous; ovate-conic, symmetrical; apophyses rufous brown, low-pyramidal, the umbo mutic.

From The Genus Pinus by Shaw, George Russell

No less a poet than P. Robinson, in no less famous a poem than "Under the Sun," wrote, "The patulous teak, with its great leathern leaves."

From Through East Anglia in a Motor Car by Vincent, J. E. (James Edmund)

The patulous elms, then, exercised their influence on the manœuvres.

From Through East Anglia in a Motor Car by Vincent, J. E. (James Edmund)

Ponfick has shown that these are venous infarctions, the arterioles leading to them being patulous.

From A System of Practical Medicine by American Authors, Vol. I Volume 1: Pathology and General Diseases by Various

The gland-ducts are enlarged, patulous or plugged with sebaceous and epithelial matter.

From Essentials of Diseases of the Skin Including the Syphilodermata Arranged in the Form of Questions and Answers Prepared Especially for Students of Medicine by Stelwagon, Henry Weightman