15 entries found for
root. The first 10 are listed below.
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Main Entry:
1root 
Pronunciation:
rüt,
r
t
Function:
noun
Etymology: Old English
r
t "root of a plant"; of Norse origin
1 a : the leafless usually underground part of a plant that absorbs water and minerals, stores food, and holds the plant in place
b : an underground plant part especially when fleshy and edible
2 a : the part of a tooth within the socket
b : the base or end of a bodily part (as a hair or a fingernail) or the part by which it is attached to the body
3 a : an original cause
: SOURCE <the
roots of evil>
b : the ancestors of a person or a group of persons <people tracing their
roots>
c : something that lies under and supports <the
roots of a mountain chain>
d : 1CORE 1, heart <get to the
root of the problem>
e : a special relationship with a social environment <has
roots deep in Southern life>
4 a : a number that when multiplied by itself a given number of times equals a specified number <2 is a 4th
root of 16 because 2 x 2 x 2 x 2 = 16>
b : a solution of a polynomial equation with one unknown <(
x + 1) (
x - 1) = 0 has the
roots x = -1 and
x = 1>
5 : a word or part of a word from which other words are formed <"butler" and "bottle" come from the same Latin
root> <"hold" is the
root of "holder">
-
root·ed 
/
-
d/
adjective -
root·less 
/
-l
s/
adjective -
root·like 
/
-
l
k/
adjective
Browse words next to "
root."