petiole

Definitions

1. The stalk of a leaf, attaching the blade to the stem.
2. A narrow or constricted segment of the body of an insect; especially, the metasomal segment of certain Hymenoptera, such as wasps.
3. The stalk at the base of the nest of the paper wasp.

Equivalents

Examples

“Most insects consume⟳ tissue from the leaf blade were measured just past the twist⟳ on the side away only, leaving the leaf petioles unscathed.”

“By contrast, the petioles of large pinnate leaves, as well as stems, typically resist⟳ torsion by placing stiff materials with high elastic moduli (like⟳ sclerenchyma) toward the perimeters of their cross sections.”

“An example of this is leaf petioles. Some species of trees have⟳ pinnate leaves which, when the leaves fall⟳, shed⟳ pinnae from the petiole, which is then left as a tapering, somewhat flexible rod.”

CEFR level