sorus

American  

[sawr-uhs, sohr-] / ˈsɔr əs, ˈsoʊr- /

noun

• sori
  plural

1. Botany. one of the clusters of sporangia on the back of the fronds of ferns.

2. Mycology. a soruslike spore mass of certain fungi and lichens.

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sorus British  

/ ˈsɔːrəs /

noun

1. a cluster of sporangia on the undersurface of certain fern leaves

2. any of various similar spore-producing structures in some lichens and fungi

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sorus Scientific  

/ sôr′əs /

• sori
  plural

1. A cluster of sporangia borne on the underside of a fern frond. A sorus is sometimes covered by an indusium.

2. Also called fruitdot

3. A reproductive structure consisting of masses of spores, characteristic of certain fungi such as rusts and smuts.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• sori
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of sorus

1825–35; < New Latin < Greek sōrós heap

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sorus sori

But Brock also thought she saw something else in the sorus.

From Slate ● Jan. 19, 2011

Indusium cup-shaped, fixed beneath the sorus, supported by the tooth of a leaf; sporangia borne in an elevated, globular receptacle open at the top.

From The Fern Lover's Companion A Guide for the Northeastern States and Canada by George Henry Tilton

Indusium star-shaped, of a few irregular segments fixed beneath the sorus, often obscure.

From The Fern Lover's Companion A Guide for the Northeastern States and Canada by George Henry Tilton

Synangium, si-nan′ji-um, n. an arterial trunk: the boat-shaped sorus of certain ferns.

From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 4 of 4: S-Z and supplements) by Various

Sori round, borne on the veins; indusium fixed under the sorus, divided into segments or into slender filaments.

From The Manual of the Botany of the Northern United States Including the District East of the Mississippi and North of North Carolina and Tennessee by Asa Gray

The photo shows small bumps called sori on the underside of a fern frond.

From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015

They are distinguished by large leaves called fronds and small sporangia-containing structures called sori, which are found on the underside of the fronds.

From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015

Inside the sori, spores are produced by meiosis and released into the air.

From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2015

A good lens with needles for dissecting is very helpful in examining the sori, veins, glands, etc., as an accurate knowledge of any one of these items may aid in identifying a given specimen.

From The Fern Lover's Companion A Guide for the Northeastern States and Canada by George Henry Tilton

An expression very strange to English verse occurs in the line, "Hir cher was ay semand sori."

From Notes and Queries, Vol. IV, Number 94, August 16, 1851 A Medium of Inter-communication for Literary Men, Artists, Antiquaries, Genealogists, etc. by Various

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