cambium

noun

cam·​bi·​um ˈkam-bē-əm How to pronounce cambium (audio)
plural cambiums or cambia ˈkam-bē-ə How to pronounce cambium (audio)
: a thin formative layer between the xylem and phloem of most vascular plants that gives rise to new cells and is responsible for secondary growth
cambial adjective

Examples of cambium in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Cankers are more likely to occur on plants that have been weakened by pest, disease, sunburn, poor nutrition or wounds, including pruning wounds, that open the inner cambium to disease. Rita Perwich, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Apr. 2024 If the tie extensively obstructs the cambium — the live tissues moving water, sugars, and nutrients around the tree — that lies under the bark, one or more major branches above it may die back in the coming years, for which there is no treatment. Miri Talabac, Baltimore Sun, 8 Feb. 2024 Green, moist cambium is alive; dry, brown or gray cambium is dead. Miri Talabac, Baltimore Sun, 30 Mar. 2022 Furthermore, while the cells inside ginkgo responsible for creating new growth were still happily dividing even in ancient trees, the layer in which those cells reside, called the cambium, gets thinner and thinner over time, Munné-Bosch tells the Times. Alex Fox, Smithsonian Magazine, 30 July 2020 Sometimes the cambium layer, which is the green tissue just under the bark, comes off with the bark. Lynn Coulter, Better Homes & Gardens, 29 Mar. 2023 The team focused on the cambium, or the surface layer that grows each year, creating trees' annual rings. Leslie Nemo, Discover Magazine, 13 Jan. 2020 The cambium is dry in many areas. Lee Roop | Lroop@al.com, al, 13 Sep. 2022 Living cambium is what the scratch test looks for. Miri Talabac, Baltimore Sun, 30 Mar. 2022

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'cambium.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, from Medieval Latin, exchange, from Latin cambire to exchange — more at change

First Known Use

1672, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of cambium was in 1672

Dictionary Entries Near cambium

Cite this Entry

“Cambium.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cambium. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.

Kids Definition

cambium

noun
cam·​bi·​um ˈkam-bē-əm How to pronounce cambium (audio)
plural cambiums or cambia -bē-ə How to pronounce cambium (audio)
: a thin cell layer between the xylem and phloem of most vascular plants from which new cells (as of wood and bark) develop
cambial adjective

More from Merriam-Webster on cambium

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