Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun The innermost layer of the cortex that forms a sheath around the vascular tissue of roots and some stems.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun In botany, the layer of modified parenchyma-cells which are united to form the sheath surrounding a fibrovascular bundle.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun (Bot.) A layer of cells forming a kind of cuticle inside of the proper cortical layer, or surrounding an individual fibrovascular bundle.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun botany In a plant stem or root, a cylinder of cells the separates the outer cortex from the central core. The endodermis controls flow of water and minerals within the plant. In most plants, this tissue is restricted to the roots.
  • noun zoology The deepest layer of the skin.

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[endo– + (epi)dermis.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From endo- (“within”) +‎ dermis (“skin”)

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word endodermis.

Examples

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.

  • (n): (plant anatomy) a thin layer of parenchyma cells in plant roots, just outside the vascular cylinder or stele, that regulates water flow. The endodermis consists of a single-celled ring which forms a selective barrier between the outer cortex and the inner pericycle tissue of the root. The endodermis regulates the molecules that can pass through cell walls into the tissues of the plant.

    January 4, 2009