sepal

[ see-puhl ]
See synonyms for sepal on Thesaurus.com
nounBotany.
  1. one of the individual leaves or parts of the calyx of a flower.

Origin of sepal

1
<New Latin sepalum (1790), irregular coinage based on Greek sképē covering and Latin petalumpetal

Other words from sepal

  • sepaled, sepalled, adjective

Words Nearby sepal

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use sepal in a sentence

  • Many edible flowers can be eaten whole, but some are best disassembled to avoid the inedible sepal, pistil, and stamens—basically the base of the flower and all those funky bits in the center.

  • White or palest rose of sepal and petal, the latter marked with purplish lines at the base.

    The Woodlands Orchids | Frederick Boyle
  • The colour of sepal and petal pink, the throat yellow, the spreading disc magenta-crimson.

    The Woodlands Orchids | Frederick Boyle
  • Harrisoniae in colour and size of sepal and petal; in general shape and in the hues of the labellum after L. purpurata.

    The Woodlands Orchids | Frederick Boyle
  • The great dorsal sepal is white above, tender green in two shades below, with strong green lines ascending from the base.

    The Woodlands Orchids | Frederick Boyle
  • The yellow ground colour shows itself only in a few narrow streaks upon sepal and petal, and in the base of the lip.

    The Woodlands Orchids | Frederick Boyle

British Dictionary definitions for sepal

sepal

/ (ˈsɛpəl) /


noun
  1. any of the separate parts of the calyx of a flower

Origin of sepal

1
C19: from New Latin sepalum: sep-, from Greek skepē a covering + -alum, from New Latin petalum petal

Derived forms of sepal

  • sepalled or sepalous (ˈsɛpələs), adjective

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 sepal

sepal

[ pəl ]


  1. One of the usually separate, green parts that surround and protect the flower bud and extend from the base of a flower after it has opened. Sepals tend to occur in the same number as the petals and to be centered over the petal divisions. In some species sepals are colored like petals, and they can even be indistinguishable from petals, as in the lilies (in what are called tepals). In some groups, such as the poppies, the sepals fall off after the flower bud opens. See more at flower.

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