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plural roots
1
a
: the usually underground part of a seed plant body that originates usually from the hypocotyl, functions as an organ of absorption, aeration, and food storage or as a means of anchorage and support, and differs from a stem especially in lacking nodes, buds, and leaves
b
: any subterranean plant part (such as a true root or a bulb, tuber, rootstock, or other modified stem) especially when fleshy and edible
2
a
: the part of a tooth within the socket
also
: any of the processes into which this part is often divided see tooth illustration
b
: the enlarged basal part of a hair within the skin
c
: the proximal end of a nerve
especially
: the initial segment of a spinal nerve where it branches from the spinal cord : nerve root see also dorsal root, ventral root
3
b
: one or more progenitors of a group of descendants
—usually used in plural
c
: an underlying support : basis
d
: the essential core : heart
—often used in the phrase at root
e
: close relationship with an environment : tie
—usually used in plural
6
: the simple element inferred as the basis from which a word is derived by phonetic change or by extension (such as composition or the addition of an affix or inflectional ending)
rootedness
noun
rootlessness
noun
see also take root
rooted; rooting; roots
rooted; rooting; roots
rooted; rooting; roots
rooter
noun
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Merriam-Webster unabridged
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