graft

¹graft

noun \ˈgraft\

Definition of GRAFT

1

a : a grafted plant

b : scion 1

c : the point of insertion of a scion upon a stock

2

a : the act of grafting

b : something grafted; specifically : living tissue used in grafting

Illustration of GRAFT

Origin of GRAFT

Middle English graffe, grafte, from Anglo-French greffe, graife stylus, graph, from Medieval Latin graphium, from Latin, stylus, from Greek grapheion, from graphein to write — more at carve

First Known Use: 14th century

Other Agriculture/Gardening Terms

fallow, heirloom, loam, potash, soilage, swath, tilth, windfall

Rhymes with GRAFT

aft, craft, draft, haft, kraft, raft, shaft, waft

²graft

verb

Definition of GRAFT

transitive verb

1

a : to cause (a scion) to unite with a stock; also : to unite (plants or scion and stock) to form a graft

b : to propagate (a plant) by grafting

2

a : to join or unite as if by grafting

b : to attach (a chemical unit) to a main molecular chain

3

: to implant (living tissue) surgically

intransitive verb

1

: to become grafted

2

: to perform grafting

— graft·er noun

Illustration of GRAFT

First Known Use of GRAFT

14th century

³graft

noun

Definition of GRAFT

chiefly British

: work, labor

Origin of GRAFT

English dialect graft, verb, to work

First Known Use: 1853

⁴graft

verb

Definition of GRAFT

transitive verb

: to get (illicit gain) by graft

intransitive verb

: to practice graft

Origin of GRAFT

origin unknown

First Known Use: 1859

⁵graft

noun

Definition of GRAFT

: the acquisition of gain (as money) in dishonest or questionable ways; also : illegal or unfair gain

First Known Use of GRAFT

1865

graft

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

Some methods of grafting: (1) simple splice graft, showing cut surfaces of stock and scion and the …—© Merriam-Webster Inc.

In horticulture, the act of placing a portion of one plant (called a bud or scion) into or on a stem, root, or branch of another (called the stock) in such a way that a union forms and the partners continue to grow. Grafting is used for various purposes: to repair injured trees, produce dwarf trees and shrubs, strengthen plants' resistance to certain diseases, retain varietal characteristics, adapt varieties to adverse soil or climatic conditions, ensure pollination, produce multifruited or multiflowered plants, and propagate certain species (such as hybrid roses) that can be propagated in no other way. In theory, any two plants that are closely related botanically and that have a continuous cambium can be grafted. Grafts between species of the same genus are often successful and between genera occasionally so, but grafts between families are nearly always failures.