Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun The movement or growth of an organism in a particular direction in response to contact with a solid object.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun In biology, the movement or growth of an organism in relation to contact with a foreign body; stereotropism. See
thigmotaxis .
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun biology Growth or motion in response to touch.
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
[Greek thigma, touch; see thigmotaxis + –tropism.]
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
thigmo- + tropism
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Examples
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What are the advantages of thigmotropism to climbing plants? if a tree falls in a forest, and no one is near it, does it make a sound?
sionnach commented on the word thigmotropism
1. An orientation response to touch or a contact stimulus.
2. The orientation of an organism in response to a mechanical displacement.
3. Growth curvature in response to a contact stimulus found in clinging plant organs.
4. A tendency of an organism or part of an organism to bend or to turn in response to a touch stimulus; such as, a vine coiling around a string support.
December 3, 2007