Dictionary:

tendril

  (tĕn'drəl)

1. A twisting, threadlike structure by which a twining plant, such as a grape or cucumber, grasps an object or a plant for support.
2. Something, such as a ringlet of hair, that is long, slender, and curling.

[French tendrillon, from Old French, diminutive of tendron, young shoot, from tendre, tender. See tender¹.]

noun

A young stemlike growth arising from a plant: bine, offshoot, runner, shoot, sprig, sprout. See kin.

For more information on tendril, visit Britannica.com.

Very common architectural ornament resembling plant-like tendrils. In Classical architecture it is associated with acanthus, anthemion, and palmette, and occurs in Celtic and Anglo-Saxon ornament, medieval grapevine or trail, Renaissance and Mannerist arabesque and grotesque, Art Nouveau whiplash and derivations from Celtic and Norse ornament, and many other styles in various guises and variations.

Bibliography

• Greenhalgh (ed.) (2000)
• Tschudi-Madsen (1967)

The full bibliography for this book is available to download as a pdf file.
Download the bibliography for A Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture (PDF: 1.2MB)

A thin twisting extension by which a plant grasps an object and clings for support; a modified stem, stipule, or leaf.

A curling tendril

Nepenthes rafflesiana upper pitcher with coiled tendril

Spiky Plant Tendril

Virginia creeper adhesive Tendril

In botany, a tendril is a specialized stem, leaf or petiole with a threadlike shape that is used by climbing plants for support and attachment, generally by twining around whatever it touches.

History

The earliest and most comprehensive study of tendrils was Charles Darwin's monograph On the Movements and Habits of Climbing Plants, which was originally published in 1865. This work also coined the term circumnutation to describe the motion of growing stems and tendrils seeking supports.

Biology of tendrils

In the garden pea, it is only the terminal leaflets that are modified to become tendrils. In other plants such as the yellow vetch (Lathyrus aphaca) the whole leaf is modified to become tendrils while the stipules become enlarged and carry out photosynthesis. Still others use the rachis of a compound leaf as a tendril, such as members of the genus Clematis.

The specialised pitcher traps of Nepenthes plants form on the end of tendrils. The tendrils of aerial pitchers are usually coiled in the middle. If the tendril comes into contact with an object for long enough it will usually curl around it, forming a strong anchor point for the pitcher. In this way, the tendrils help to support the growing stem of the plant.

Tendril can also be used to describe a wisp of hair or indeed anything that resembles the tendrils of plants.

References

• Clarke, C.M. 1997. Nepenthes of Borneo. Natural History Publications, Kota Kinabalu.

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

Dansk (Danish)
n. - (bot.) slyngtråd

Nederlands (Dutch)
(hecht)rank, (haar) sliert

Français (French)
n. - vrille, mèche folle

Deutsch (German)
n. - Ranke

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - (φυτολ.) κληματσίδα (κν. ψαλίδα, έλικα), μπουκλίτσα (μαλλιού)

Italiano (Italian)
viticcio

Português (Portuguese)
n. - gravinha (f) (Bot.), anel (m) de cabelo

Русский (Russian)
завиток волос, (бот) усик

Español (Spanish)
n. - zarcillo

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - klänge (bot.), ranka (bot.), hårlock, hårtest

中文（简体） (Chinese (Simplified))
卷须, 卷须状之物, 蔓

中文（繁體） (Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 捲鬚, 捲鬚狀之物, 蔓

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 덩굴손

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - 巻きひげ, 巻きひげ状のもの

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) جزء لولبي من ألنبته ألمعترشه يساعدها على التعلق بسنادها, ألمحلاق, الحالق‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮קנוקנת, תלתלון, ענף של צמח מטפס‬

If you are unable to view some languages clearly, click here.

To select your translation preferences click here.