Meaning & use
inflorescences
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“inflorescences” is a form of “inflorescence”.
Meaning
nounpluraltechnicalbiology
Groups of flowers arranged on a single stem or branching stem system of a plant.
Grammar: Plural of inflorescence; the singular is used for one cluster.
Patterns
- inflorescences of a plant
- the inflorescences on a stem
The inflorescences of the sunflower look like single flowers but are made of many tiny florets.
Bees visit the plant's inflorescences from early morning.
Botanists classify inflorescences by how their flowers are arranged.
Word forms
| singular | inflorescence |
|---|
Common combinations
- branched inflorescences
- Lilacs have branched inflorescences full of small blossoms.
- dense inflorescences
- The grass produces dense inflorescences in summer.
- inflorescences emerge
- The inflorescences emerge before the leaves in spring.
- male inflorescences
- Male inflorescences release pollen into the wind.
Synonyms and how they differ
- flower clusters
- Flower clusters is the plain-English phrase, while inflorescences is the exact botanical term.
- blooms
- Blooms usually means individual flowers, whereas inflorescences are whole groups of flowers.
- flower heads
- Flower heads describes compact clusters such as daisies, but inflorescences also covers loose or branching arrangements.
Word family
Commonly confused: inflorescences or infructescence?
inflorescences vs infructescence
An infructescence is the fruiting stage of the same structure, a cluster of fruits, while an inflorescence is the flowering stage.
Practice
The sunflower's large head is not one flower but a cluster of tiny florets, which botanists call an ____.
Choose one answer.
An inflorescence is a group of flowers on a stem. The other options are real words but have nothing to do with flower clusters.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “inflorescences”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.