: a spicate inflorescence (as of the willow, birch, or oak) bearing scaly bracts and unisexual usually apetalous flowers
called also ament
Examples of catkin in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Regular pruning in winter to open up the plant and remove the oldest stems will also result in larger catkins.
—
Beth Botts, Chicago Tribune, 29 Mar. 2025
By early April, the bunches of silvery hairs, called catkins, will become tiny yellow flowers.
—Beth Botts, Chicago Tribune, 29 Mar. 2025
The trees had recently flowered, and the lawn under their branches was littered with dusty, brittle catkins.
—Caleb Crain, The New Yorker, 4 Aug. 2024
Moose gorge, stripping catkins as the snows melt, using their flexible noses and lips to select new leaves.
—Krista Stevens, Longreads, 2 May 2024
Then the arms and legs bud out like willow catkins and the spine begins to straighten.
—Lori Vogt Rosone, New York Times, 15 Mar. 2024
These catkins form in the fall and winter, releasing pollen once the female flowers are ready.
—Jeff Lowenfels, Anchorage Daily News, 31 Aug. 2023
Those catkins release capsules of seed to the wind on parachutes of fluff.
—Ned Rozell | Alaska Science, Anchorage Daily News, 28 May 2023
What happens in the stream and beside it is tightly linked, Milner found: Willow catkins are food for caddis flies, and alder roots provide chironomids with safe homes.
—Lesley Evans Ogden, Discover Magazine, 7 Apr. 2023
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Beth Botts, Chicago Tribune, 29 Mar. 2025
By early April, the bunches of silvery hairs, called catkins, will become tiny yellow flowers.
—Beth Botts, Chicago Tribune, 29 Mar. 2025
The trees had recently flowered, and the lawn under their branches was littered with dusty, brittle catkins.
—Caleb Crain, The New Yorker, 4 Aug. 2024
Moose gorge, stripping catkins as the snows melt, using their flexible noses and lips to select new leaves.
—Krista Stevens, Longreads, 2 May 2024
Then the arms and legs bud out like willow catkins and the spine begins to straighten.
—Lori Vogt Rosone, New York Times, 15 Mar. 2024
These catkins form in the fall and winter, releasing pollen once the female flowers are ready.
—Jeff Lowenfels, Anchorage Daily News, 31 Aug. 2023
Those catkins release capsules of seed to the wind on parachutes of fluff.
—Ned Rozell | Alaska Science, Anchorage Daily News, 28 May 2023
What happens in the stream and beside it is tightly linked, Milner found: Willow catkins are food for caddis flies, and alder roots provide chironomids with safe homes.
—Lesley Evans Ogden, Discover Magazine, 7 Apr. 2023
Cite this Entry
“Catkin.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/catkin. Accessed 6 May. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
catkin
noun
cat·kin
ˈkat-kən 
: a flower cluster (as of the willow or birch) in which the flowers grow in close circular rows along a slender stalk
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share