pistil

[ pis-tl ]

/ ˈpɪs tl /

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noun Botany.

the ovule-bearing or seed-bearing female organ of a flower, consisting when complete of ovary, style, and stigma.

such organs collectively, where there are more than one in a flower.

a gynoecium.

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THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

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Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

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Origin of pistil

1570–80; earlier pistillum, special use of Latin pistillumpestle

Words nearby pistil

pissy, pistachio, pistachio green, pistareen, piste, pistil, pistillate, Pistoia, pistol, pistole, pistoleer

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

How to use pistil in a sentence

When what does my gentleman do but whips out an 'oss pistil as long as my harm, and shoots my left 'and neighbor dead!
The Book of Anecdotes and Budget of Fun;|Various
Thar was a young man named Jeames Hambrick along and another young feller, he got to fooling with his pistil, and he shot Jeames.
The Book of Anecdotes and Budget of Fun;|Various
The single pistil is many times enlarged in the monstrous blossom—in one instance two thirds of an inch in diameter for the ovary.
Appletons' Popular Science Monthly, July 1899|Various
Within the circle above mentioned there was a second pistil, tipped like the original with petal-like lobes instead of a stigma.
Appletons' Popular Science Monthly, July 1899|Various

In many flowers the pistil is entirely wanting, and the plant is perhaps diœcious.
Travels in the Interior of North America, 1832-1834, Part III (the Text Being Chapters XXVIII-XXXIII of the London Edition, 1843, and the Appendix a Combination of the Appendices of the London and German [Coblentz, 1839] Editions)|Maximilian, Prinz von Wied

British Dictionary definitions for pistil

pistil

/ (ˈpɪstɪl) /

noun

the female reproductive part of a flower, consisting of one or more separate or fused carpels; gynoecium

Word Origin for pistil

C18: from Latin pistillum pestle

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 pistil

pistil

[ pĭs′təl ]

One of the female reproductive organs of a flower, consisting of a single carpel or of several carpels fused together. A flower may have one pistil or more than one, though some flowers lack pistils and bear only the male reproductive organs known as stamens. See more at carpel flower.

Cultural definitions for pistil

pistil

[ (pis-tuhl) ]

The female part of a plant. In flowering plants, it is at the center of the flower. When fertilized with pollen, the pistil develops into fruit.