pinnate

[ pin-eyt, -it ]

/ ˈpɪn eɪt, -ɪt /

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adjective Biology.

(of a leaf) having leaflets or primary divisions arranged on each side of a common stalk: the pinnate leaves of a palm tree.

resembling a feather, as in construction or arrangement; having parts arranged on each side of a common axis: This type of sea cucumber has a mouth surrounded by up to 25 pinnate tentacles.

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Often pin·nat·ed

[pin-ey-tid] /ˈpɪn eɪ tɪd/ .

Origin of pinnate

First recorded in 1695–1705, pinnate is from the Latin word pinnātus “feathered, winged.” See pinna, -ate¹

OTHER WORDS FROM pinnate

pin·nate·ly, pin·nat·ed·ly, adverbmul·ti·pin·nate, adjective

Words nearby pinnate

pin mark, pin money, pinna, pinnace, pinnacle, pinnate, pinnati-, pinnatifid, pinnation, pinnatipartite, pinnatiped

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use pinnate in a sentence

These branches were clad with the delicate pinnate leaves that characterise the family of the mimosas.
Popular Adventure Tales|Mayne Reid
The fern has large pinnate fronds, and is thus related to the mountain ash and the mimosæ.
Traditions, Superstitions and Folk-lore|Charles Hardwick
These are sometimes once, and on other occasions, twice pinnate.
How to Know the Ferns|S. Leonard Bastin
The frond is bi-pinnate, and the pinnæ are long and taper to a fine point.
How to Know the Ferns|S. Leonard Bastin

The origin is by two distinct heads, each of which is pinnate.
Myology and Serology of the Avian Family Fringillidae|William B. Stallcup

British Dictionary definitions for pinnate

pinnate

pinnated

/ (ˈpɪneɪt, ˈpɪnɪt) /

adjective

like a feather in appearance

(of compound leaves) having the leaflets growing opposite each other in pairs on either side of the stem

Derived forms of pinnate

pinnately, adverbpinnation, noun

Word Origin for pinnate

C18: from Latin pinnātus, from pinna feather

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

Scientific definitions for pinnate

pinnate

[ pĭn′āt′ ]

Having parts or divisions arranged on each side of a common axis in the manner of a feather. Ash, hickory, and walnut trees have pinnate leaves.