pinnated

9.9

Divided into many small leaves arranged along both sides of a central stem like a feather

adjective
/ˈpɪneɪtɪd/

Specialized

: pinnado

The botanist noted that the pinnated structure of the plant's leaves helps maximize sunlight exposure.

Examples

The pinnated leaves of the fern create a beautiful fan shape in the garden.
In Milne's article on "motion," he describes how "During the heat of the sun in the daytime, the pinnated or winged leaves of several plants... rise vertically upwards," and during "the sleep of plants," "after sunset... hang vertically downwards, and are applied closely together, like the leaves of a book."

Academic text (2017)
As we walked through the tropical forest, the pinnated foliage of palm trees caught our attention.

Synonyms

pinnate

vspinnated

Specialized

1 9.6

A leaf with small leaflets on each side of a central stem like a feather

is the alternative adjective form used for the same leaf shape

pinnate-leafed

vspinnated

Specialized

8.9

Leaves that have many small parts arranged on both sides of a central stem

is used for the leaf structure itself rather than the whole plant

pinnate-leaved

vspinnated

Specialized

8.8

Having leaves made of many small parts arranged along a central stem

is more about the leaf shape than a plant description

Surface Forms

pinnated positive

Morphology

pinnated = pinnate (transparent) = pinnate + ed

Formed from the adjective 'pinnate' with a standard adjectival/past-participial '-ed', so the meaning is directly derived.

Etymology

Pinnated comes from the Latin root pinna meaning 'feather' or 'wing', so it describes leaves split into many small parts like a feather. Think of a feather with little parts on each side of the middle — a pinnated leaf has small leaflets arranged along a central stem.