n., pl., haus·to·ri·a (hô-stôr'ē-ə, -stōr'-).
A specialized absorbing structure of a parasitic plant, such as the rootlike outgrowth of the dodder, that obtains food from a host plant.
[New Latin haustōrium, from Latin haustus, a drawing in, absorption, from past participle of haurīre, to draw up.]
haustorial haus·to'ri·al adj.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
