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Glite Dictionary
dead-man's-fingers

dead-man's-fingers

9.9
Dark fungi that look like fingers and grow from rotting wood
  • noun
  • /ˈdɛdˌmænz ˈfɪŋɡərz/
  • Specialized
translation icon : dedos de muerto
  • A naturalist explained that dead-man's-fingers are actually the fruiting bodies of the fungus Xylaria polymorpha.

Examples

  • We spotted a cluster of dead-man's-fingers growing from a fallen tree in the forest.

  • I found some dead-man's-fingers growing on the old tree stump.

  • The bizarre appearance of dead-man's-fingers makes them easily identifiable among woodland fungi.

  • Look! Dead-man's-fingers are fascinating!

  • A naturalist explained that dead-man's-fingers are actually the fruiting bodies of the fungus Xylaria polymorpha.

  • We spotted a cluster of dead-man's-fingers growing from a fallen tree in the forest.

  • I found some dead-man's-fingers growing on the old tree stump.

Synonyms

Xylaria polymorpha
vsdead-man's-fingers
  • Specialized
9.9

A black fungus that grows as long, finger-like shapes on rotten wood

is the broader common term for such fungi rather than that single species
dead-men's-fingers
vsdead-man's-fingers
  • Specialized
9.9

Dark, finger-shaped parts of a fungus that grow on dead wood

is the singular name used for the fungus itself rather than the bodies
Xylaria
vsdead-man's-fingers
  • Specialized
9.9

A group of fungi that grow on decaying wood as black, woody, finger-like growths like dead man's fingers

refers to a single fungus species with those finger-like fruiting bodies

Surface Forms

dead-man's-fingers singular
dead-man's-fingers plural

Etymology

Dead-man's-fingers is named for how this fungus looks. It grows dark, finger-like parts from dead wood that look like the fingers of a dead hand, so the name helps you remember its strange shape.