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tomentose

tomentose

9.9
Covered in thick, soft hairs like short wool on leaves or stems
  • adjective
  • /təˈmɛnˌtoʊs/
  • Specialized
translation icon : tomentoso
  • The leaves of the plant are tomentose, giving them a soft, velvety texture.

Examples

  • The caterpillar appeared tomentose, covered in thick, woolly hairs.

  • The tomentose leaves of the plant were soft to the touch.

  • Many alpine plants have tomentose stems to reduce water loss in their harsh environment.

  • This species of moss is tomentose and thrives in damp environments.

  • Many alpine plants have tomentose stems to reduce water loss in their harsh environment.

  • The caterpillar appeared tomentose, covered in thick, woolly hairs.

  • The leaves of the plant are tomentose, giving them a soft, velvety texture.

Synonyms

fuzzy
vstomentose
44 1.1

Covered with soft light hairs like kitten fur

describes thicker, matted hairs rather than light, loose fibres
woolly
vstomentose
12 3.0

Soft and covered with thick hair like a sheep

is more about dense, matted hairs rather than a soft fluffy covering
hoary
vstomentose
  • Specialized
1 9.8

Covered with fine white hairs, usually on plants or animals

means a dense, matted hair covering rather than thin pale down
tomentous
vstomentose
  • Specialized
9.9

Covered in many short, woolly hairs on a leaf or stem

has the same meaning but uses the -ose ending as the standard form
woolly-haired
vstomentose
5.1

Having thick, curly or matted hair like wool

focuses on dense, matted hair texture specifically rather than general hair traits
wooled
vstomentose
3.7

An animal or thing with a thick soft coat of wool

indicates a denser, matted wool hair cover rather than general wooliness
furlike
vstomentose
4.6

A thing that has soft thick hair like an animal coat

refers to densely matted hair like wool rather than a smooth animal coat

How Hairy

tomentose
  • Specialized
9.9
hairy
134 1.0
woolly
12 3.0
downy
4 4.2
smooth
256 1.0

Surface Forms

tomentose positive

Morphology

tomentose = tomentum (opaque) = tomentum + ose

Formed from the rare technical noun 'tomentum' plus the suffix '-ose'; the root is specialized and not known to average learners, so meaning is not derivable for most.

Etymology

The word tomentose comes from the Latin tomentum, which means 'cushion stuffing' or 'wool'. So a tomentose leaf or animal is covered in thick, woolly hairs—like a plant wearing a soft cushion—which explains its soft, velvety feel.