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Webster 1913 Edition
Tendril
Ten′dril
,Noun.
[Shortened fr. OF. , and cf.
tendrillon
, fr. F. tendre
tender; hence, properly, the tender branch or spring of a plant: cf. F. tendrille
. See Tender
, Adj.
Tendron
.] (Bot.)
A slender, leafless portion of a plant by which it becomes attached to a supporting body, after which the tendril usually contracts by coiling spirally.
☞ Tendrils may represent the end of a stem, as in the grapevine; an axillary branch, as in the passion flower; stipules, as in the genus Smilax; or the end of a leaf, as in the pea.
Ten′dril
,Adj.
Clasping; climbing as a tendril.
[R.]
Dyer.
Webster 1828 Edition
Tendril
TEN'DRIL
,Noun.
They are also given to creeping vines, which require support on the earth.
TEN'DRIL
,Adj.