liverwort

Dictionary: liv·er·wort (lĭv'ər-wûrt', -wôrt') pronunciation

Any of numerous small, green, nonvascular plants of the class Hepaticae within the division Bryophyta.

[From its use in treating diseases of the liver.]

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Britannica Concise Encyclopedia: liverwort

Any of more than 8,000 species of small, nonvascular, spore-producing land plants that make up the class Hepatopsida (or Hepaticae) of bryophytes, found worldwide but mostly in the tropics. Thallose liverworts commonly grow on moist soil or damp rocks; leafy liverworts are found in similar habitats and on tree trunks in damp woods. Sexual (gametophyte) and asexual (sporophyte) generations alternate in the life cycle (see alternation of generations). The thallus of thallose liverworts, resembling a lobed liver, gives liverworts their name. Though not economically important to humans, liverworts provide food for animals, facilitate the decay of logs, and aid in the disintegration of rocks by their ability to retain moisture.

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Columbia Encyclopedia: liverwort

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liverwort, any plant of the class Marchantiopsida. Mosses and liverworts together comprise the division Bryophyta, primitive green land plants (see moss; plant); some of the earliest land plants resembled modern liverworts. In contrast to mosses, most liverworts grow prostrate and consist of a flattened, branching (but undifferentiated) green structure, the thallus; other liverworts produce leafy stems, which are flattened and usually prostrate. The ancients believed that liverworts could cure diseases of the liver, hence the name. They are also called hepatics, and the unrelated flowering plant hepatica is frequently called liverwort. Liverworts are classified in the division Bryophyta, class Marchantiopsida.

WordNet: liverwort

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Note: click on a word meaning below to see its connections and related words.

The noun has one meaning:

Meaning #1: any of numerous small green nonvascular plants of the class Hepaticopsida growing in wet places and resembling green seaweeds or leafy mosses

Wikipedia: Liverwort

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Liverwort may refer to either

Marchantiophyta, a division of non-vascular plants.
Hepatica, a genus of spring flowers.

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

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Copyrights:

		Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. Read more
		Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 2006 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved. Read more
		Columbia Encyclopedia. The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright © 2003, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/ Read more
		WordNet. WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. Read more
		Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Liverwort". Read more