Background for ergot
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ergot

/ˈɜːɡət/

Meanings
noun
Any fungus in the genus Claviceps which are parasitic on grasses.

Examples :

"The farmer worried about ergot infecting his rye crop, as the fungus can be harmful to both animals and humans. "
organism plant biology agriculture medicine disease nature science food

Related Words

Illustration infecting

infecting verb

/ɪnˈfɛktɪŋ/

To bring into contact with a substance that causes illness (a pathogen).

"Not everyone will be infected when an epidemic strikes."

Illustration harmful

harmful adjective

/ˈhɑːmfl̩/ /ˈhɑɹmfl̩/

Of a kind likely to be damaging; injurious

"Wear a hat to protect your skin from harmful sunlight."

Illustration sclerotium

sclerotium noun

/skləˈroʊʃiəm/ /sklɪˈroʊʃiəm/

A compact mass of hardened mycelium stored with reserve food material that, in some higher fungi such as ergot, becomes detached and remains dormant until a favourable opportunity for growth occurs.

"The gardener found a small, dark sclerotium in the soil, a dormant fungal structure waiting for the right conditions to sprout. "

Illustration wintering

wintering verb

/ˈwɪntərɪŋ/ /ˈwɪnɾərɪŋ/

To spend the winter (in a particular place).

"When they retired, they hoped to winter in Florida."

Illustration grasses

grasses noun

/ˈɡræsɪz/ /ˈɡrɑːsɪz/

Any plant of the family Poaceae, characterized by leaves that arise from nodes in the stem and leaf bases that wrap around the stem, especially those grown as ground cover rather than for grain.

"The park ranger explained that grasses prevent soil erosion on the hillside. "

Illustration deformed

deformed verb

/dɪˈfɔːmd/

To change the form of, usually negatively; to give (something) an unusual or abnormal shape.

"The accident severely deformed the young boy's arm. "

Illustration worried

worried adjective

/ˈwʌɹid/

Thinking about unpleasant things that have happened or that might happen; feeling afraid and unhappy.

"She was worried about her son who had been sent off to fight in the war."

Illustration infected

infected verb

/ɪnˈfɛktɪd/

To bring into contact with a substance that causes illness (a pathogen).

"Not everyone will be infected when an epidemic strikes."

Illustration appearing

appearing verb

/əˈpɪəɹ.ɪŋ/

To come or be in sight; to be in view; to become visible.

"The sun was finally appearing from behind the clouds. "

Illustration certain

certain noun

/ˈsɝtn̩/ /ˈsɜːtn̩/

(with "the") Something certain.

"The certain success of the project was a relief to the team. "

Illustration animals

animals noun

/ˈæn.ɪ.məlz/

In scientific usage, a multicellular organism that is usually mobile, whose cells are not encased in a rigid cell wall (distinguishing it from plants and fungi) and which derives energy solely from the consumption of other organisms (distinguishing it from plants).

"A cat is an animal, not a plant. Humans are also animals, under the scientific definition, as we are not plants."

Illustration parasitic

parasitic noun

/pæ.ɹəˈsɪt.ɪk/ /pɛɹ.əˈsɪt.ɪk/

A component of a circuit that does not show up in a circuit's schematic but does show up in the circuit's behavior.

"The parasitic capacitance in the circuit caused unexpected delays in the computer program's execution. "