tendril

noun

ten·​dril ˈten-drəl 

1

: a leaf, stipule, or stem modified into a slender spirally coiling sensitive organ serving to attach a climbing plant to its support

2

: something suggestive of a tendril

creeping tendrils of fog

tendriled adjective

or tendrilled

ˈten-drəld 

tendrilous

ˈten-drə-ləs 

adjective

Illustration of tendril

• tendril 1

Examples of tendril in a Sentence

A few tendrils of hair framed her face.

Recent Examples on the Web

The low-hanging clouds reached their misty tendrils toward us, dousing us in a cool bath of rain. —Stefanie Waldek, AFAR Media, 12 Sep. 2025

The actor wore the Pammy, with her brunette hair pinned up in a just-messy-enough textured pile, leaving her iconic curtain bangs (plus two textured tendrils, to frame) exposed. —Grace McCarty, Glamour, 12 Sep. 2025

Those tendrils of greenery would act as invitations worth accepting, passageways to Queens’s own central park, a haven of natural beauty, noisy play, quiet retreat, and social gathering. —Justin Davidson, Curbed, 9 Sep. 2025

The Radiance is defeated, and is instantly pulled below by the black tendrils of Void, into the Abyss. —Dani Di Placido, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

probably modification of Middle French tendron bud, cartilage, alteration of Old French tenrum, from Vulgar Latin *tenerumen, from Latin tener tender — more at tender entry 1

First Known Use

1538, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

tendril

noun

ten·​dril ˈten-drəl 

1

: a slender leafless winding stem by which some climbing plants fasten themselves to a support

2

: something that curls like a tendril

tendrils of hair