root hair

American  

noun

1. an elongated tubular extension of an epidermal cell of a root, serving to absorb water and minerals from the soil.

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root hair British  

noun

1. any of the hollow hairlike outgrowths of the outer cells of a root, just behind the tip, that absorb water and salts from the soil

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root hair Scientific  

1. A hairlike outgrowth of a plant root that absorbs water and minerals from the soil. Root hairs are tubular extensions of the epidermis that greatly increase the surface area of the root. They are constantly dying off and being replaced by new ones as the root grows and extends itself into the soil.

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Etymology

Origin of root hair

First recorded in 1855–60

Example Sentences

Beginning at the first root hair is the zone of cell maturation where the root cells begin to differentiate into special cell types.

From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022

His white hair was fine and thin as root hair and long enough to brush against the earthen floor.

From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin

But the large lumps leave large spaces which no tiny root hair can penetrate.

From The Library of Work and Play: Gardening and Farming. by Shaw, Ellen Eddy