elater

noun /ˈɛl.ə.tə/

1. Elasticity; especially the expansibility of a gas.

   obsolete

2. A long, slender cell produced among spores and having hygroscopic secondary cell wall thickenings.

   The closest affinities of the Jubulaceae are with the Lejeuneaceae. The two families share in common: (a) elaters usually 1-spiral, trumpet-shaped and fixed to the capsule valves, distally[…]

3. Any of the long, slender hygroscopic appendages attached to the spores of horsetails (genus Equisetum).

Where it comes from

From New Latin elatēr, from Ancient Greek ἐλατήρ (elatḗr, “driver, that which drives away”).

Adapted from the Wiktionary entry elater (CC BY-SA 4.0).

← elanceelench →

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