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Glite Dictionary
pappose

pappose

9.9
Having feathery hairs on seeds that let them float in the wind
  • adjective
  • /ˈpæp.oʊs/
  • Specialized
: con pápulas
  • Many thistle plants are pappose, producing seeds with feathery bristles for dispersal.

Examples

  • The dandelion’s pappose seeds are easily carried away by the wind.

  • Many plants, like thistles, produce pappose seeds.

  • The botanist noted the pappose heads of the composite flowers in her field journal.

  • The pappose seeds of the dandelion are easily carried by the wind.

  • The dandelion's pappose seeds float gently on the breeze, spreading across the garden.

  • Many thistle species are pappose, allowing their lightweight seeds to be carried far by the wind.

  • In her study, she identified several pappose flowers known for their feathery seed tufts.

Surface Forms

pappose positive

Morphology

pappose = pappus (opaque) = pappus + ose

Formed by adding the adjectival suffix '-ose' to the technical botanical noun 'pappus', but both the base and the suffix are specialized and unlikely to be known by average learners.

Etymology

Pappose comes from the plant word pappus, which in turn comes from a Greek word pappos meaning 'old man' or 'grandfather'; imagine a tiny white beard on a seed like a dandelion. That's why pappose means having feathery bristles or tufts that help seeds travel on the wind.