carpel

[ kahr-puhl ]

noun

, Botany.

1. a simple pistil, or a single member of a compound pistil.

carpel

/ ˈkɑːpɪˌleɪt; ˈkɑːpəl /

noun

1. the female reproductive organ of flowering plants, consisting of an ovary, style (sometimes absent), and stigma. The carpels are separate or fused to form a single pistil

carpel

/ kär′pəl /

1. One of the individual female reproductive organs in a flower. A carpel is composed of an ovary, a style, and a stigma, although some flowers have carpels without a distinct style. In origin, carpels are leaves (megasporophylls) that have evolved to enclose the ovules. The term pistil is sometimes used to refer to a single carpel or to several carpels fused together.
2. See more at flower

Derived Forms

• carpellate, adjective
• ˈcarpellary, adjective

Other Words From

• car·pel·lar·y [kahr, -p, uh, -ler-ee], adjective
• inter·carpel·lary adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of carpel¹

1810–20; < New Latin carpellum, equivalent to Greek karp ( ós ) fruit + Latin -ellum diminutive suffix

Word History and Origins

Origin of carpel¹

C19: from New Latin carpellum, from Greek karpos fruit

Example Sentences

He cut a lemon open; the walls of its carpels had crumbled into a pulpy mush.

From New York Times

Their existence suggests not only where the second seed coat came from, but also how carpels came to be, as some of these cupules appear to have modified leaves that could have evolved into carpels.

From Science Magazine

Stems might be fashioned from paper towels; carpels are made from toilet paper.

From New York Times

He had carpel tunnel syndrome in his left hand, a bad shoulder and macular degeneration that made it hard for him to see the ball at address.

From Golf Digest

One thing is for sure, Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis hasn’t had to worry about suffering with carpel tunnel syndrome from signing too many bills.

From Washington Times