Since Biology involves so many new terms, it is worth your while to figure out what they mean. The regularities in the use of the word roots (e.g., cyto- ) that are used in scientific terminology will help you to understand new terms as they come along (e.g., "cytoskeleton"). They can also help you remember their meanings as new vocabulary starts to accumulate. Below are some word derivations, along with some definitions of terms.
Plant introduction
root system
shoot system
root
stem
leaf
flower
fruit
dermal tissue system
vascular tissue system
ground tissue system
protoplast (proto-, "before, a precursor ", + -plast, diminutive suffix)
vacuole (vacu-, "vacuum, emptiness ", + -ole, "having to do with cytoplasm")
turgor
turgid
plasmodesma [pl. plasmodesmata] (plamso-, "having to do with cytoplasm", + -desma, "link, band")
primary cell wall
secondary cell wall
lignin (lign-, "wood", + -in, suffix denoting a chemical compound)
pectin
middle lamella (L. diminutive of lamina, "a thin plate")
parenchyma (Gk. "visceral flesh"; para-, "beside", + -en-, "in" + -chyma, "poured": poured in beside [the cells are packed closely])
collenchyma (coll-, "glue" + -enchyma, "cellular tissue" [from parenchyma])
sclerenchyma (scler-, "hard, dried up" + -enchyma, "cellular tissue"[from parenchyma])
sclerid (scler-, "hard", + -id, " thing")
tracheid (trache-, "rough tube, trachea", + -id, " thing")
xylem (Gk. xylon, "wood" [as in "xylophone"][woody tissue largely contains xylem])
vessel element
phloem (Gk. bark [phloem often lies just below the bark])
sieve tube member
companion cell
blade
petiole (peti-, "foot" + -ole, diminutive suffix)
stipule (stip-, "stalk" + -ule, diminutive suffix)
simple leaf
compound leaf
palmate (L. palma, "the palm of a hand")
pinnate (L. pinna, "feather")
vein
parallel venation
net-like venation
epidermis (epi-, "over, upon" + -dermis, "skin")
cuticle (cutic-, "skin" + -ule, diminutive suffix)
cutin
trichome (Gk. "hair")
stoma [pl. stomata] (Gk. "mouth): an opening in the surface of a leaf that permits gas exchange
guard cell
mesophyll (meso-, "middle", + -phyll, " leaf" [the middle of the leaf])
palisade (a wall made of closely-set logs or poles, like in a colonial fort in N. America) mesophyll
spongy mesophyll
vascular bundle
bundle sheath
internode (inter-, "between" + -node, "knot, node")
node (L. nodus, "knot, node")
lenticel (lenti-, "lens-shaped [from "lentil"]", + -cel, a diminutive suffix)
terminal (L. terminus, "end")
axillary (adj. form of L. axilla, "armpit")
leaf scale scar
bundle scar
bud scale scar
epidermis (epi-, "over, upon" + -dermis, "skin")
cortex (L. "bark")
vascular (L. vasculum, "small vessel") bundle
pith
primary growth
secondary growth
meristem (from Gk. meristos, meri-, "divided, part")
apical (adjectival form of "apex": tip) meristem
lateral (from L. latus, "side") meristem
vascular cambium
periderm
cork cambium
cork
bark
suberin (suber-, "cork" + -in, suffix for a chemical)
heartwood
sapwood
root pressure
guttation
tension-cohesion mechanism
transpiration (tran-, "across", + -spir-, "to breath", + -ation, suffix for a process): the loss of water from aerial plant parts because of evaporation
cohesion (co-, "with, together", + -hesion, "to stick or cling"): the tendency of water to stick together, caused by hydrogen bonds among water molecules
pressure-flow hypothesis
sucrose
sugar (sucrose) source
sucrose (sucrose) sink
adventitious (L. "not belonging to")
epidermis (epi-, "over, upon" + -dermis, "skin")
root hair
cortex (L. "bark")
endodermis (endo-, "inner" + -dermis, "skin")
stele (Gk. "pillar")
pericycle (peri-, "around" + -cycle, "circle")
pith
Casparian strip
soil
sand
silt
clay
loam
humus
cation exchange
cation exchange capacity: the capacity for a soil to allow cation exchange, governed by the availability of sites for cations
acid precipitation
symplast (sym-, "with, together with" + -plast, "having to do with cytoplasm")
apoplast (apo-, "apart, off" + -plast, "having to do with cytoplasm")
mycorrhiza [pl. mycorrhizae] (myco-, "fungus" + -rrhiza, "root")
Rhizobium (rhizo, "root" + -bi-, "life" + -um, suffix to make a noun)
insectivorous
asexual reproduction
apomixis
spore
sporangium [pl. sporangia] (spor-, "seed" + -angium, "vessel")
zygote (Gk. zygotos, "yoked, joined")
sporophyte (sporo-, "spore" + -phyte, "plant"): a plant that produces spores
gametophyte (gam-, "gamete" + -phyte, "plant"): a plant that produces gametes
carpel
stigma (L. "spot, mark")
style (Gk. "pillar, stalk")
ovary (ov-, "egg" + -ary, "a place where something is kept")
ovule (ov-, "egg" + -ule, diminutive suffix)
stamen (L. "thread")
anther
pollen sac
pollen
pollination
sepal (from L. sepa-, "covering")
tube cell
generative cell
polar nuclei
egg cell
double fertilization
endosperm (endo-, "inner" + -sperm, "seed")
embryo
cotyledon
seed
fruit
pollinator
floral syndrome
seed dispersal
elaiosome
Reproduction of growth in plants
circadian rhythm
photochrome
Pr
Pfr
short-day plant
long-day plant
imbibition
abciscic acid
gibberellin
auxin
cytokinin
apical dominance