a part of the body of a plant that develops, typically, from the radicle and grows downward into the soil, anchoring the plant and absorbing nutriment and moisture.
2.
a similar organ developed from some other part of a plant, as one of those by which ivy clings to its support.
3.
any underground part of a plant, as a rhizome.
4.
something resembling or suggesting the root of a plant in position or function: roots of wires and cables.
5.
the embedded or basal portion of a hair, tooth, nail, nerve, etc.
6.
the fundamental or essential part: the root of a matter.
7.
the source or origin of a thing: The love of money is the root of all evil.
8.
a person or family as the source of offspring or descendants.
9.
an offshoot or scion.
10.
Mathematics.
a.
Also called nth root. a quantity that, when multiplied by itself a certain number of times, produces a given quantity: The number 2 is the square root of 4, the cube root of 8, and the fourth root of 16.
b.
rth root, the quantity raised to the power 1/r: The number 2 is the 1/3root of 8.
c.
a value of the argument of a function for which the function takes the value zero.
11.
Grammar.
a.
a morpheme that underlies an inflectional or derivational paradigm, as dance, the root in danced, dancer, or ten-, the root of Latin tendere “to stretch.”
b.
such a form reconstructed for a parent language, as *sed-, the hypothetical proto-Indo-European root meaning “sit.”
12.
roots,
a.
a person's original or true home, environment, and culture: He's lived in New York for twenty years, but his roots are in France.
b.
the personal relationships, affinity for a locale, habits, and the like, that make a country, region, city, or town one's true home: He lived in Tulsa for a few years, but never established any roots there.
c.
personal identification with a culture, religion, etc., seen as promoting the development of the character or the stability of society as a whole.
13.
Music.
a.
the fundamental tone of a compound tone or of a series of harmonies.
b.
the lowest tone of a chord when arranged as a series of thirds; the fundamental.
14.
Machinery.
a.
(in a screw or other threaded object) the narrow inner surface between threads. Compare crest(def. 18), flank(def. 7).
b.
(in a gear) the narrow inner surface between teeth.
15.
AustralianInformal. an act of sexual intercourse.
16.
Shipbuilding. the inner angle of an angle iron.
–verb (used without object)
17.
to become fixed or established.
–verb (used with object)
18.
to fix by or as if by roots: We were rooted to the spot by surprise.
19.
to implant or establish deeply: Good manners were rooted in him like a second nature.
20.
to pull, tear, or dig up by the roots (often fol. by up or out).
21.
to extirpate; exterminate; remove completely (often fol. by up or out): to root out crime.
—Idioms
22.
root and branch, utterly; entirely: to destroy something root and branch.
23.
take root,
a.
to send out roots; begin to grow.
b.
to become fixed or established: The prejudices of parents usually take root in their children.
[Origin: bef. 1150; (n.) ME; late OE rōt < ON rōt; akin to OE wyrt plant, wort2, G Wurzel, L rādīx (see radix), Gk rhíza (see rhizome); (v.) ME roten, rooten, deriv. of the n.]
The usually underground portion of a plant that lacks buds, leaves, or nodes and serves as support, draws minerals and water from the surrounding soil, and sometimes stores food.
Any of various other underground plant parts, especially an underground stem such as a rhizome, corm, or tuber.
The embedded part of an organ or structure such as a hair, tooth, or nerve, that serves as a base or support.
A base or support: We snipped the wires at the roots.
The condition of being settled and of belonging to a particular place or society. Often used in the plural: Our roots in this town go back a long way.
roots The state of having or establishing an indigenous relationship with or a personal affinity for a particular culture, society, or environment: music with unmistakable African roots.
The element that carries the main component of meaning in a word and provides the basis from which a word is derived by adding affixes or inflectional endings or by phonetic change.
Such an element reconstructed for a protolanguage. Also called radical.
A number that when multiplied by itself an indicated number of times forms a product equal to a specified number. For example, a fourth root of 4 is √2. Also called nth root.
A number that reduces a polynomial equation in one variable to an identity when it is substituted for the variable.
A number at which a polynomial has the value zero.
The note from which a chord is built.
Such a note occurring as the lowest note of a triad or other chord.
An essential part or element; the basic core: I finally got to the root of the problem.
A primary source; an origin. See Synonyms at origin.
A progenitor or ancestor from which a person or family is descended.
The condition of being settled and of belonging to a particular place or society. Often used in the plural: Our roots in this town go back a long way.
roots The state of having or establishing an indigenous relationship with or a personal affinity for a particular culture, society, or environment: music with unmistakable African roots.
The element that carries the main component of meaning in a word and provides the basis from which a word is derived by adding affixes or inflectional endings or by phonetic change.
Such an element reconstructed for a protolanguage. Also called radical.
A number that when multiplied by itself an indicated number of times forms a product equal to a specified number. For example, a fourth root of 4 is √2. Also called nth root.
A number that reduces a polynomial equation in one variable to an identity when it is substituted for the variable.
A number at which a polynomial has the value zero.
The note from which a chord is built.
Such a note occurring as the lowest note of a triad or other chord.
Linguistics
The element that carries the main component of meaning in a word and provides the basis from which a word is derived by adding affixes or inflectional endings or by phonetic change.
Such an element reconstructed for a protolanguage. Also called radical.
A number that when multiplied by itself an indicated number of times forms a product equal to a specified number. For example, a fourth root of 4 is √2. Also called nth root.
A number that reduces a polynomial equation in one variable to an identity when it is substituted for the variable.
A number at which a polynomial has the value zero.
The note from which a chord is built.
Such a note occurring as the lowest note of a triad or other chord.
Mathematics
A number that when multiplied by itself an indicated number of times forms a product equal to a specified number. For example, a fourth root of 4 is √2. Also called nth root.
A number that reduces a polynomial equation in one variable to an identity when it is substituted for the variable.
A number at which a polynomial has the value zero.
The note from which a chord is built.
Such a note occurring as the lowest note of a triad or other chord.
Music
The note from which a chord is built.
Such a note occurring as the lowest note of a triad or other chord.
v.
root·ed, root·ing, roots
v.
intr.
To grow roots or a root.
To become firmly established, settled, or entrenched.
To come into existence; originate.
v.
tr.
To cause to put out roots and grow.
To implant by or as if by the roots.
To furnish a primary source or origin to.
To remove by or as if by the roots. Often used with up or out:"declared that waste and fraud will be vigorously rooted out of Government"(New York Times).
[Middle English rot, from Old English rōt, from Old Norse; see wrād- in Indo-European roots.]
RootAudio Help (rōōt) Pronunciation Key
American lawyer and public official who served as U.S. secretary of war (1899-1904), secretary of state (1905-1909), and senator from New York (1909-1915). He won the 1912 Nobel Peace Prize.
Root, John Wellborn 1850-1891.
American architect whose designs include the Monadnock Building (1889-1891) in Chicago, which employed steel beams along with traditional masonry-bearings walls.
"underground part of a plant," late O.E. rot, from O.N. rot "root," from P.Gmc. *wrot, *vrot (with characteristic loss of -w- before -r-), from PIE *wrd-. The O.E. cognate was wyrt "root, herb, plant" (see wort); also cognate with L. radix. The usual O.E. words for "root" were wyrttruma and wyrtwala. Fig. use is from c.1200. Of teeth, hair, etc., from c.1225. Mathematical sense is from 1557. Slang meaning "penis" is recorded from 1846. The verb meaning "fixed or firmly attached by roots" (often fig.) is attested from 1398; sense of "to pull up by the root" (now usually uproot) also is from 1398. Root beer first recorded 1843, Amer.Eng.; root doctor is from 1821.
"dig with the snout," 1538, from M.E. wroten "dig with the snout," from O.E. wrotan, from P.Gmc. *wrotanan (cf. O.N. rota, Swed. rota "to dig out, root," M.L.G. wroten, M.Du. wroeten, O.H.G. ruozian "to plow up"), cognate with L. rodere "to gnaw" (see rodent). Associated with the verb sense of root (n.). Extended sense of "poke about, pry" first recorded 1831. Phrase root hog or die "work or fail" first attested 1834, Amer.Eng. (in works of Davey Crockett, who noted it as an "old saying"). Reduplicated form rootin' tootin' "noisy, rambunctious" is recorded from 1875.
(botany) the usually underground organ that lacks buds or leaves or nodes; absorbs water and mineral salts; usually it anchors the plant to the ground
2.
the place where something begins, where it springs into being; "the Italian beginning of the Renaissance"; "Jupiter was the origin of the radiation"; "Pittsburgh is the source of the Ohio River"; "communism's Russian root" [syn: beginning]
3.
(linguistics) the form of a word after all affixes are removed; "thematic vowels are part of the stem"
4.
a number that, when multiplied by itself some number of times, equals a given number
5.
the set of values that give a true statement when substituted into an equation [syn: solution]
6.
someone from whom you are descended (but usually more remote than a grandparent) [syn: ancestor] [ant: descendant]
7.
a simple form inferred as the common basis from which related words in several languages can be derived by linguistic processes [syn: etymon]
8.
the part of a tooth that is embedded in the jaw and serves as support
verb
1.
take root and begin to grow; "this plant roots quickly"
2.
come into existence, originate; "The problem roots in her depression"
3.
plant by the roots
4.
dig with the snout; "the pig was rooting for truffles" [syn: rout]
5.
become settled or established and stable in one's residence or life style; "He finally settled down" [syn: settle]
the part of a plant that grows under the ground and draws food and water from the soil Example: Trees often have deep roots; Carrots and turnips are edible roots.
Arabic:
جَذْر
Chinese (Simplified):
根茎
Chinese (Traditional):
根莖
Czech:
kořen
Danish:
rod
Dutch:
wortel
Estonian:
juur
Finnish:
juuri
French:
racine
German:
die Wurzel
Greek:
ρίζα
Hungarian:
gyökér
Icelandic:
rót
Indonesian:
akar
Japanese:
根
Korean:
뿌리
Latvian:
sakne
Lithuanian:
šaknis
Norwegian:
rot
Polish:
korzeń
Portuguese (Brazil):
raiz
Portuguese (Portugal):
raiz
Romanian:
rădăcină
Russian:
корень
Slovak:
koreň
Slovenian:
korenina
Spanish:
raíz
Swedish:
rot
Turkish:
kök
root2[ruːt]noun
the base of something growing in the body Example: the roots of one's hair/teeth
Arabic:
أصْل، شُرش
Chinese (Simplified):
牙（发）根
Chinese (Traditional):
牙(發)根
Czech:
kořen, kořínek
Danish:
rod; -rod
Dutch:
wortel
Estonian:
juur
Finnish:
juuri
French:
racine
German:
die Wurzel
Greek:
ρίζα
Hungarian:
gyökér
Icelandic:
rót
Indonesian:
akar
Japanese:
根元
Korean:
(머리카락·이 등의) 뿌리, 밑뿌리
Latvian:
sakne
Lithuanian:
šaknis
Norwegian:
rot
Polish:
nasada, korzeń
Portuguese (Brazil):
raiz
Portuguese (Portugal):
raiz
Romanian:
rădăcină
Russian:
корень
Slovak:
koreň
Slovenian:
korenina
Spanish:
raíz
Swedish:
rot
Turkish:
kök, dip
root3[ruːt]noun
cause; origin Example: Love of money is the root of all evil; We must get at the root of the trouble.
Arabic:
سَبَب
Chinese (Simplified):
根源
Chinese (Traditional):
根源
Czech:
kořen
Danish:
rod
Dutch:
oorsprong
Estonian:
juur, põhjus
Finnish:
alku
French:
origine, racine
German:
die Wurzel
Greek:
ρίζα, αιτία
Hungarian:
eredet
Icelandic:
rót, orsök
Indonesian:
akar
Japanese:
根源
Korean:
근원, 본질, 기초, 원인
Latvian:
sakne; cēlonis
Lithuanian:
priežastis
Norwegian:
rot, årsak
Polish:
źródło
Portuguese (Brazil):
raiz
Portuguese (Portugal):
raiz
Romanian:
origine, cauză
Russian:
причина
Slovak:
koreň
Slovenian:
izvor
Spanish:
raíz, origen
Swedish:
rot
Turkish:
neden, kaynak, köken
root4[ruːt]noun
(in plural) family origins Example: Our roots are in Scotland.
Arabic:
جُذور العائِلَه، أُصول
Chinese (Simplified):
祖先
Chinese (Traditional):
祖先
Czech:
kořeny
Danish:
rod
Dutch:
oorsprong
Estonian:
juured
Finnish:
juuri
French:
racines, origines
German:
der Ursprung
Greek:
καταγωγή, ρίζες (πληθ.)
Hungarian:
gyökerek
Icelandic:
uppruni, rætur
Indonesian:
asal-usul
Japanese:
先祖
Korean:
가계의 뿌리, 조상
Latvian:
saknes; izcelšanās
Lithuanian:
šaknys
Norwegian:
røtter, opprinnelse
Polish:
korzenie
Portuguese (Brazil):
raízes
Portuguese (Portugal):
raizes
Romanian:
origini, rădăcini
Russian:
корни
Slovak:
korene
Slovenian:
korenine
Spanish:
raíces
Swedish:
rötter
Turkish:
kök, köken
root[ruːt]verb
to (make something) grow roots Example: These plants aren't rooting very well; He rooted the plants in compost.
Arabic:
يُنْبِتُ جُذورا، يَتأصَّل
Chinese (Simplified):
使…生根
Chinese (Traditional):
使…生根
Czech:
zakořenit, zasadit
Danish:
slå rod; plante
Dutch:
wortel (doen) schieten
Estonian:
juuri alla võtma, juurduma panema
French:
(s')enraciner
German:
Wurzeln schlagen, einpflanzen
Greek:
ριζώνω, φυτεύω
Hungarian:
gyökeret ver; meggyökereztet
Icelandic:
(láta) skjóta rótum
Indonesian:
berakar, menumbuhkan akar
Japanese:
根づく
Korean:
뿌리를 내리다; 뿌리 내리게 하다
Latvian:
apsakņot; iesakņoties
Lithuanian:
šaknyti, pasodinti
Norwegian:
slå rot, feste seg
Polish:
zakorzenić sie, zasadzić
Portuguese (Brazil):
enraizar
Portuguese (Portugal):
criar raizes
Romanian:
a prinde rădăcini; a planta
Russian:
укореняться;сажать
Slovak:
zakoreniť; zasadiť
Slovenian:
ukoreniniti (se)
Spanish:
echar raíces, arraigar(se)
Swedish:
slå rot
Turkish:
kök salmak
root1[ruːt]verb
to poke about in the ground Example: The pigs were rooting about for food.
Arabic:
يُفَتِّشُ عن، يُفَتِّشُ
Chinese (Simplified):
翻弄
Chinese (Traditional):
翻弄
Czech:
rýt
Danish:
rode
Dutch:
wroeten
Estonian:
songima
Finnish:
tonkia
French:
fouiller (avec le museau)
German:
wühlen
Greek:
ψάχνω με το ρύγχος
Hungarian:
túr
Icelandic:
róta í
Indonesian:
menggali-gali, menyungkur
Japanese:
鼻で地面を掘る
Korean:
땅바닥을 헤집다
Latvian:
rakņāties
Lithuanian:
kastis, knistis
Norwegian:
rote i
Polish:
ryć
Portuguese (Brazil):
fossar
Portuguese (Portugal):
fossar
Romanian:
a râma (cu râtul)
Russian:
рыть
Slovak:
ryť
Slovenian:
riti
Spanish:
hurgar
Swedish:
böka, rota
Turkish:
(burnu ile) yiyecek aramak
root2[ruːt]verb
to search by turning things over etc Example: She rooted about in the cupboard.
A plant part that usually grows underground, secures the plant in place, absorbs minerals and water, and stores food manufactured by leaves and other plant parts. Roots grow in a root system. Eudicots and magnoliids have a central, longer, and larger taproot with many narrower lateral roots branching off, while monocots have a mass of threadlike fibrous roots, which are roughly the same length and remain close to the surface of the soil. In vascular plants, roots usually consist of a central cylinder of vascular tissue, surrounded by the pericycle and endodermis, then a thick layer of cortex, and finally an outer epidermis or (in woody plants) periderm. Only finer roots (known as feeder roots) actively take up water and minerals, generally in the uppermost meter of soil. These roots absorb minerals primarily through small epidermal structures known as root hairs. In certain plants, adventitious roots grow out from the stem above ground as aerial roots or prop roots, bending down into the soil, to facilitate the exchange of gases or increase support. Certain plants (such as the carrot and beet) have fleshy storage roots with abundant parenchyma in their vascular tissues. See also fibrous root, taproot.
Any of various other plant parts that grow underground, especially an underground stem such as a corm, rhizome, or tuber.
The part of a tooth that is embedded in the jaw and not covered by enamel.
Mathematics
A number that, when multiplied by itself a given number of times, produces a specified number. For example, since 2 × 2 × 2 × 2 = 16, 2 is a fourth root of 16.
A solution to an equation. For example, a root of the equation x2 - 4 = 0 is 2, since 22 - 4 = 0.
In biology, the part of a plant that grows downward and holds the plant in place, absorbs water and minerals from the soil, and often stores food. The main root of a plant is called the primary root; others are called secondary roots. The hard tip is called the root cap, which protects the growing cells behind it. Root hairs increase the root's absorbing surface.
Main Entry: root Pronunciation: 'rüt, 'rut Function: noun 1 a: the usually underground part of a seed plant body that functions as an organ of
absorption, aeration, and food storage or as a means of anchorage and support and that differs from a stem especially in lacking nodes, buds, and leaves b: any subterranean plant part
(as a true root or a bulb, tuber, rootstock, or other modified stem) especially when fleshy and edible 2 a (1) : the part of a tooth within the socket (2) : any of the
processes into which the root of a tooth is often divided b: the enlarged basal part of a hair within the skin called also hair rootc: the proximal end of a
nerve; especially: one or more bundles of nerve fibers joining the cranial and spinal nerves with their respective nuclei and columns of gray matter —see DORSAL ROOT, VENTRAL ROOTd: the
part of an organ or physical structure by which it is attached to the body <the root of the tongue> —root·less/-l&s/adjective
n. [Unix] 1. The superuser account (with user name `root') that ignores permission bits, user number 0 on a Unix system. The term avatar is also used. 2. The top node of the system directory structure; historically the home directory of the root user, but probably named after the root of an (inverted) tree. 3. By extension, the privileged system-maintenance login on any OS. See root mode, go root, see also wheel.
Root\, v. i. [Cf. Rout to roar.] To shout for, or otherwise noisly applaud or encourage, a contestant, as in sports; hence, to wish earnestly for the success of some one or the happening of some event, with the superstitious notion that this action may have efficacy; -- usually with for; as, the crowd rooted for the home team. [Slang or Cant, U. S.]
Root\, v. i. [AS. wr[=o]tan; akin to wr[=o]t a snout, trunk, D. wroeten to root, G. r["u]ssel snout, trunk, proboscis, Icel. r[=o]ta to root, and perhaps to L. rodere to gnaw (E. rodent) or to E. root, n.]1. To turn up the earth with the snout, as swine. 2. Hence, to seek for favor or advancement by low arts or groveling servility; to fawn servilely.
Root\, n. [Icel. r[=o]t (for vr[=o]t); akin to E. wort, and perhaps to root to turn up the earth. See Wort.]1. (Bot.) (a) The underground portion of a plant, whether a true root or a tuber, a bulb or rootstock, as in the potato, the onion, or the sweet flag. (b) The descending, and commonly branching, axis of a plant, increasing in length by growth at its extremity only, not divided into joints, leafless and without buds, and having for its offices to fix the plant in the earth, to supply it with moisture and soluble matters, and sometimes to serve as a reservoir of nutriment for future growth. A true root, however, may never reach the ground, but may be attached to a wall, etc., as in the ivy, or may hang loosely in the air, as in some epiphytic orchids. 2. An edible or esculent root, especially of such plants as produce a single root, as the beet, carrot, etc.; as, the root crop. 3. That which resembles a root in position or function, esp. as a source of nourishment or support; that from which anything proceeds as if by growth or development; as, the root of a tooth, a nail, a cancer, and the like. Specifically: (a) An ancestor or progenitor; and hence, an early race; a stem. They were the roots out of which sprang two distinct people. --Locke. (b) A primitive form of speech; one of the earliest terms employed in language; a word from which other words are formed; a radix, or radical. (c) The cause or occasion by which anything is brought about; the source. "She herself . . . is root of bounty." --Chaucer. The love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. --1 Tim. vi. 10 (rev. Ver.) (d) (Math.) That factor of a quantity which when multiplied into itself will produce that quantity; thus, 3 is a root of 9, because 3 multiplied into itself produces 9; 3 is the cube root of 27. (e) (Mus.) The fundamental tone of any chord; the tone from whose harmonics, or overtones, a chord is composed. --Busby. (f) The lowest place, position, or part. "Deep to the roots of hell." --Milton. "The roots of the mountains." --Southey. 4. (Astrol.) The time which to reckon in making calculations. When a root is of a birth yknowe [known]. --Chaucer. A["e]rial roots. (Bot.) (a) Small roots emitted from the stem of a plant in the open air, which, attaching themselves to the bark of trees, etc., serve to support the plant. (b) Large roots growing from the stem, etc., which descend and establish themselves in the soil. See Illust. of Mangrove. Multiple primary root (Bot.), a name given to the numerous roots emitted from the radicle in many plants, as the squash. Primary root (Bot.), the central, first-formed, main root, from which the rootlets are given off. Root and branch, every part; wholly; completely; as, to destroy an error root and branch. Root-and-branch men, radical reformers; -- a designation applied to the English Independents (1641). See Citation under Radical, n., 2. Root barnacle (Zo["o]l.), one of the Rhizocephala. Root hair (Bot.), one of the slender, hairlike fibers found on the surface of fresh roots. They are prolongations of the superficial cells of the root into minute tubes. --Gray. Root leaf (Bot.), a radical leaf. See Radical, a., 3 (b) . Root louse (Zo["o]l.), any plant louse, or aphid, which lives on the roots of plants, as the Phylloxera of the grapevine. See Phylloxera. Root of an equation (Alg.), that value which, substituted for the unknown quantity in an equation, satisfies the equation. Root of a nail (Anat.), the part of a nail which is covered by the skin. Root of a tooth (Anat.), the part of a tooth contained in the socket and consisting of one or more fangs. Secondary roots (Bot.), roots emitted from any part of the plant above the radicle. To strike root, To take root, to send forth roots; to become fixed in the earth, etc., by a root; hence, in general, to become planted, fixed, or established; to increase and spread; as, an opinion takes root. "The bended twigs take root." --Milton.
Root\ (r[=oo]t), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Rooted; p. pr. & vb. n. Rooting.]1. To fix the root; to enter the earth, as roots; to take root and begin to grow. In deep grounds the weeds root deeper. --Mortimer. 2. To be firmly fixed; to be established. If any irregularity chanced to intervene and to cause misappehensions, he gave them not leave to root and fasten by concealment. --Bp. Fell.
Root\, v. t. 1. To plant and fix deeply in the earth, or as in the earth; to implant firmly; hence, to make deep or radical; to establish; -- used chiefly in the participle; as, rooted trees or forests; rooted dislike. 2. To tear up by the root; to eradicate; to extirpate; -- with up, out, or away. "I will go root away the noisome weeds." --Shak. The Lord rooted them out of their land . . . and cast them into another land. --Deut. xxix. 28.
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