pentamerous

American  

[pen-tam-er-uhs] / pɛnˈtæm ər əs /

adjective

1. consisting of or divided into five parts.

2. Botany. (of flowers) having five members in each whorl.

---

pentamerous British  

/ pɛnˈtæmərəs /

adjective

1. consisting of five parts, esp (of flowers) having the petals, sepals, and other parts arranged in groups of five

---

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• pentamery
  noun
• pentamerism
  noun

Etymology

Origin of pentamerous

From the New Latin word pentamerus, dating back to 1820–30. See penta-, -merous

Example Sentences

Adephagous: belonging to the Adephaga: pentamerous, predatory, terrestrial beetles with filiform antennae and predatory habits: see hydradephagous.

From Explanation of Terms Used in Entomology by Smith, John. B.

A flower in which the parts are arranged in twos is called dimerous; when the parts of the whorls are three, four or five, the flower is trimerous, tetramerous or pentamerous, respectively.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 10, Slice 5 "Fleury, Claude" to "Foraker" by Various

In the British Adoxa the uppermost flower generally has two calyx-lobes with the other organs tetramerous, while the surrounding flowers generally have three calyx-lobes with the other organs pentamerous.

From The Origin of Species by means of Natural Selection, 6th Edition by Darwin, Charles

In the large tropical genus Croton a pentamerous calyx and corolla are generally present, the stamens are often very numerous, and the female flower has three carpels.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 9, Slice 8 "Ethiopia" to "Evangelical Association" by Various

Thus, in both Lilium lancifolium and L. auratum the writer has frequently met with pentamerous flowers.

From Vegetable Teratology An Account of the Principal Deviations from the Usual Construction of Plants by Masters, Maxwell T.