tendril

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noun ten·dril \ ˈten-drəl \

Definition of tendril

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

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tendriled

or tendrilled play \-drəld\ adjective

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tendrilous

play \-drə-ləs\ adjective

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See tendril defined for kids

Examples of tendril in a Sentence

A few tendrils of hair framed her face.

Recent Examples of tendril from the Web

A nude but warm-looking Lily Aldridge, with mussed tendrils of hair, is the campaign face.

— kathleen hou, The Cut, "This New Perfume Smells Like Warm Silk," 25 Aug. 2017
The event featured cakes adorned with flowers and pearls, painted with rock candy rainbows and even one with otherworldly edible tendrils.

— kansascity, "We went to Bridal Spec. Here's what happened.," 31 July 2017
Tendrils of black give way to love potion pink as thick, skin softening jelly spreads on the surface of the water.

— victoria jowett, Cosmopolitan, "LUSH's New Bath Bombs Turn Water Into Jelly, Yes, JELLY," 21 July 2017
White gowns, constructed of tendrils or fibers, provoked myriad interpretations — evoking simultaneously the lines of a sound wave, the rippling sea or the gills of a fish.

— thomas adamson, Detroit Free Press, "Art mixes with the aquatic for Paris Couture Week," 3 July 2017
Pig ears are slivered and fried into crisp-chewy tendrils that are woven with watercress and pickled onion and piled on creamy pecan butter.

— providence cicero, The Seattle Times, "At JuneBaby, star chef Edouardo Jordan returns to his Southern roots," 22 June 2017
Duane Linklater, another indigenous Canadian artist in this show, has produced a new mural whose motifs — googly eyes, antlerlike tendrils — riff on the decorations of the Indians of Canada pavilion.

— jason farago, New York Times, "Expo 2017: Utopia, Rebooted," 22 June 2017
Under these conditions, water vapor freezes onto any dust particles floating in the region, forming ice crystals that congregate into tendrils and filaments.

— National Geographic, "Eerie Clouds Glow at Night—How to See Them," 22 June 2017
Its name comes from its tendrils with three claw-like hooks.

— dan gill, NOLA.com, "How to control vines, shrubs and spreading plants: Dan Gill's mailbag," 12 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'tendril.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Illustration of tendril

Origin and Etymology of tendril

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

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1538

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