pollen

[pol-uhn]

noun

1. the fertilizing element of flowering plants, consisting of fine, powdery, yellowish grains or spores, sometimes in masses.

verb (used with object)

1. to pollinate.

pollen

¹

/ pəˈlɪnɪk, ˈpɒlən /

noun

1. a fine powdery substance produced by the anthers of seed-bearing plants, consisting of numerous fine grains containing the male gametes

Pollen

²

/ ˈpɒlən /

noun

1. Daniel. 1813–96, New Zealand statesman, born in Ireland: prime minister of New Zealand (1876)

pollen

1. Powdery grains that contain the male reproductive cells of most plants. In gymnosperms, pollen is produced by male cones or conelike structures. In angiosperms, pollen is produced by the anthers at the end of stamens in flowers. Each pollen grain contains a generative cell, which divides into two nuclei (one of which fertilizes the egg), and a tube cell, which grows into a pollen tube to conduct the generative cell or the nuclei into the ovule. The pollen grain is the male gametophyte generation of seed-bearing plants. In gymnosperms, each pollen grain also contains two sterile cells (called prothallial cells), thought to be remnants of the vegetative tissue of the male gametophyte.

pollen

1. The male sex cells in plants. In flowering plants, pollen is produced in thin filaments in the flower called stamens. (See fertilization and pollination.)

When pollen is carried into the air by the wind, it frequently causes allergic reactions (see allergy) in humans.

Other Word Forms

• pollenless adjective
• pollenlike adjective
• pollinic adjective
• pollinical adjective
• unpollened adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of pollen¹

1515–25; < New Latin, special use of Latin: fine flour, mill dust

Word History and Origins

Origin of pollen¹

C16: from Latin: powder; compare Greek palē pollen

Example Sentences

They make honey in hives, which becomes their food source over winter when flowers have stopped producing pollen.

From BBC

Bees are also showing signs of shutting down for the winter, after flowering plants finished producing pollen and nectar in the hot weather.

From BBC

The Huntington shares pollen and corms of the corpse flower with other botanical gardens, distributing hundreds of specimens to maintain genetic diversity, discourage poaching and strengthen conservation networks.

From Los Angeles Times

He says a study by the University of Worcester showed oak and grass pollen seasons are starting earlier and birch pollen is becoming more severe.

From BBC

High or very high UV and pollen levels are also predicted.

From BBC

Related Words

• antigen 
• dander 
• irritant 
• ragweed