pollination
/ˌpɒlɪˈneɪʃən/
pollination means the transfer of pollen from an anther to a stigma; effected by insects, birds, bats and the wind etc.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, pollination ranks #7,143 of 14,322 for Scariest Words.
pollination is pronounced /ˌpɒlɪˈneɪʃən/.
Why “pollination” is a great word
The transfer of pollen from a male anther to a female stigma to enable fertilization. From pollinate, formed from Latin pollen, “fine flour, pollen,” and the noun-forming suffix -ion, first recorded in English 1870–75. Unlike “fertilization” (which names the culminating cellular union) or “pollinosis” (which describes the human allergic misery caused by the substance), pollination is the quiet, necessary journey that precedes the event. It is the industrious bee dusted in gold, the wind carrying invisible clouds over miles of forest, and the nectar bat guiding through moonlit canopy—the silent, myriad contracts written between species to ensure the world keeps turning.
Etymology
From pollinate + -ion.
noun
- The transfer of pollen from an anther to a stigma; effected by insects, birds, bats and the wind etc.
Words closest in meaning
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