polypody

[ pol-ee-poh-dee ]

noun,plural pol·y·po·dies.
  1. any fern of the genus Polypodium, as P. vulgare, having creeping rootstocks, deeply pinnatifid evergreen fronds, and round, naked sori.

Origin of polypody

1
1400–50; late Middle English polypodye<Latin polypodion<Greek polypódion (>New Latin Polypodium); see poly-, -pod, -ium

Words Nearby polypody

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use polypody in a sentence

  • For instance, the Limestone polypody is not happy unless there is a certain amount of lime present in the soil.

    How to Know the Ferns | S. Leonard Bastin
  • The Common polypody will, of course, grow in almost any position.

    How to Know the Ferns | S. Leonard Bastin
  • The frond of the Common polypody is cut in a pinnatifid manner.

    How to Know the Ferns | S. Leonard Bastin
  • There are a large number of varieties of the Common polypody.

    How to Know the Ferns | S. Leonard Bastin
  • The great round fruit-dots of the polypody show distinctly through the fronds as they stand erect in the sunlight.

    How to Know the Ferns | Frances Theodora Parsons

British Dictionary definitions for polypody

polypody

/ (ˈpɒlɪˌpəʊdɪ) /


nounplural -dies
  1. any of various ferns of the genus Polypodium, esp P. vulgare, having deeply divided leaves and round naked sori: family Polypodiaceae

  2. any fern of the family Polypodiaceae, all having opaque leaves that are divided in most species

Origin of polypody

1
C15: from Latin polypodium, from Greek, from poly- + pous foot

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012