root hair

noun

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

Origin of root hair

First recorded in 1855–60

Words Nearby root hair

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

How to use root hair in a sentence

The halo-like zone of the rhizosphere extends from a few millimeters to a centimeter or so around every single root and root hair.
Junk Food Is Bad For Plants, Too - Issue 90: Something Green | Anne Biklé & David R. Montgomery | September 23, 2020 | Nautilus
The extent of the root-hair region will vary according to the vigour and development of the roots and the nature of the soil.
A Handbook of Some South Indian Grasses | Rai Bahadur K. Ranga Achariyar
Better, an artificial root hair may be made in the following way.
A Civic Biology | George William Hunter
The interior of the root hair is more or less filled with a fluid called cell sap.
A Civic Biology | George William Hunter
When placed in water, it gives a very accurate picture of the root hair at work.
A Civic Biology | George William Hunter

The fluid in the root hair is denser than the soil water; hence the greater flow is toward the interior of the root hair.
A Civic Biology | George William Hunter

British Dictionary definitions for root hair

root hair

noun

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

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 root hair

root hair

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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