floretn.1
/ˈflɒrᵻt/, /ˈflɔːrᵻt/, U.S. /ˈflɔrət/ 1. Botany. One of the little flowers that go to make up a composite flower or the spikelet in grasses. florets of the disk, florets of the ray (see quot. 1866).
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > plants and herbs > according to family > Compositae (composite plants) > [noun] > composite plant > part of plant
flower1530
pale1578
thrum1578
blade1672
floret1672
semi-floscule1720
radius1727
ray1727
semi-floret1729
egret1785
floscule1785
anthodium1812
periclinium1826
pericline1855
chaff-scale1856
phyllary1857
anthode1865
arrowlet1872
1672 N. Grew Anat. Veg. v. 143 The outer part of every Suit, is its Floret..a Floret is the Epitome of a flower.
1785 T. Martyn tr. J.-J. Rousseau Lett. Elements Bot. vi. 69 The choke..is an assemblage of florets which are beginning to be formed.
1807 J. E. Smith Introd. Physiol. & Systematical Bot. 456 Florets of the disk furnished with stamens only.
1866 J. Lindley & T. Moore Treasury Bot. The florets of the disk are those which occupy the centre of the head of a composite; while florets of the ray occupy the circumference.
?1877 F. E. Hulme Familiar Wild Flowers I. Summary p. viii Dandelion... All the florets ligulate.
2. A small flower, a floweret.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > part of plant > reproductive part(s) > flower or part containing reproductive organs > flower or flowering plant > [noun] > characterized by size
floweretc1400
floret1786
1789 E. Darwin Bot. Garden: Pt. II 66 He..Crops the young floret and the bladed herb.
1865 J. Ruskin Sesame & Lilies ii. 192 These feeble florets are lying, with all their fresh leaves torn, and their stems broken.
Draft additions 1993
b. Also florette. A piece of the ‘curd’ or head of broccoli, cauliflower, etc., as commonly broken up for culinary purposes. Cf. floweret n. Additions 2.
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the world > food and drink > food > fruit and vegetables > vegetables > cabbage or kale > [noun] > head of cauliflower or broccoli > piece of curd, broken up for culinary purposes
floweret1911
floret1948
1948 Good Housek. Cookery Bk. 322/1 An alternative method is to divide the cauliflower into florets before cooking—it cooks more evenly in this way.
1976 Daily Mail (Hull) 30 Sept. 13 (advt.) Cool Buys at the Co-op Freezer Centre... Cauliflower florettes.
1987 Washington Post 23 Sept. e14/4 She will buy a few cauliflower florets on the salad bar because her family only likes it raw in salads.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1897; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
† floretn.2
Obsolete.
= ferret n.2 Only attributive as floret-silk n. = floss silk n.
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the world > textiles and clothing > textiles > treated or processed textiles > [noun] > silk > floss or carded silk
filoselle1561
ferret-silk1576
floret-silk1582
floss silk1760
floreting1775
1582 Rates Custome House (new ed.) sig. Eiv Silk called Floret silk the pound contayning xvi. vnces.
1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues Fleuret, course silke; floret silke.
1640 Tables Rates & Duties in J. Entick New Hist. London (1766) II. 169 Ferret or Floret silk.
Derivatives
ΘΚΠ
the world > textiles and clothing > textiles > treated or processed textiles > [noun] > silk > floss or carded silk
filoselle1561
ferret-silk1576
floret-silk1582
floss silk1760
floreting1775
1775 B. Romans Conc. Nat. Hist. E. & W. Florida 144 This mixture is carded and called floretting.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1897; most recently modified version published online March 2021).
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