Illustration of seedling
- 1 primary root
- 2 rootlet
- 3 root hairs
- 4 hypocotyl
- 5 cotyledon
- 6 epicotyl
- 7 true leaf
1
: a young plant grown from seed
2
a
: a young tree before it becomes a sapling
b
: a nursery plant not yet transplanted
seedling
adjective
Examples of seedling in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Cold frames are also useful in the spring to get a few plants going early, or to start seedlings in pots outdoors.
—
Andy Wilcox, Better Homes & Gardens, 9 Nov. 2025
The first book tells the full story of how the director’s most recent film came to be, from Tarantino’s seedling of an idea after seeing a stunt double and actor chat it up on-set, to the film’s FYC campaign during the 2020 awards season.
—Andrew McGowan, Variety, 28 Oct. 2025
Thin out the seedlings so there is one per pot.
—Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 21 Oct. 2025
For instance, following Hurricane Michael, the Eastman Foundation and GP Cellulose collaborated with The Longleaf Alliance to give 60,000 longleaf pine seedlings to help restore Torreya State Park in Florida.
—Sarah Jones, Sourcing Journal, 20 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for seedling
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.
Andy Wilcox, Better Homes & Gardens, 9 Nov. 2025
The first book tells the full story of how the director’s most recent film came to be, from Tarantino’s seedling of an idea after seeing a stunt double and actor chat it up on-set, to the film’s FYC campaign during the 2020 awards season.
—Andrew McGowan, Variety, 28 Oct. 2025
Thin out the seedlings so there is one per pot.
—Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 21 Oct. 2025
For instance, following Hurricane Michael, the Eastman Foundation and GP Cellulose collaborated with The Longleaf Alliance to give 60,000 longleaf pine seedlings to help restore Torreya State Park in Florida.
—Sarah Jones, Sourcing Journal, 20 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for seedling
Cite this Entry
“Seedling.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/seedling. Accessed 14 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
seedling
noun
seed·ling
ˈsēd-liŋ 
1
: a young plant grown from seed
2
: a tree before it becomes a sapling
seedling
adjective
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share