# root

Pronunciation: say "ROOT" /ɹuːt/

## Noun

1. The part of a plant, usually underground, that anchors and supports it, absorbs and stores water and nutrients, and in some plants can produce new growth.
   - Simple: The part of a plant, usually under the ground, that holds it in place and takes in water and minerals.
   - _The oak's roots spread wider underground than its branches do above._
   - _Each root draws water and minerals from the surrounding soil._
2. The primary source or origin from which something develops.
   - Simple: The main place or cause that something first comes from.
   - _Investigators traced the scandal back to its root in a single bad deal._
   - _Resentment lay at the root of the long family feud._
4. Where a person comes from in terms of family, ethnicity or culture, or the bond they feel with their home place; usually plural.
   - Simple: The family, culture or place a person comes from, and the strong link they feel to it.
   - _The singer has never forgotten her working-class roots._
   - _After decades abroad, he returned to the village to reconnect with his roots._
6. The part of a tooth, hair or nail that is embedded in the body, or the base of a nerve, the tongue or another body part where it joins the body.
   - Simple: The part of a tooth, hair or nail hidden inside the body, or where a body part joins the body.
   - _Pressure on a nerve root in his lower back sent pain shooting down his leg._
   - _Each hair grows from a root buried in a tiny pocket of skin._
7. An underground vegetable eaten as food, such as a carrot, beet, or turnip.
   - Simple: A vegetable that grows under the ground, such as a carrot or turnip.
   - _The winter stew was thick with roots and barley._
   - _Peel and grate the root before adding it to the salad._
8. The basic part of a word that carries its main meaning and from which other words are formed, as Latin 'aqua' in 'aquatic.'
   - Simple: The main part of a word that carries its meaning and that other words are built from.
   - _The Latin root 'aqua' underlies 'aquatic,' 'aquarium,' and 'aqueduct.'_
   - _Two Greek roots combine to form the word 'telephone.'_
9. A number that, multiplied by itself a given number of times, gives a stated number; without a stated power, the square root.
   - Simple: A number that, multiplied by itself a set number of times, makes another number. Alone, it usually means square root.
   - _Taking the root of both sides solves the equation neatly._
   - _The root of two cannot be written as a simple fraction._
17. The length of hair closest to the scalp that has not been dyed, permed, or otherwise treated.
   - Simple: The part of dyed hair near the head where the natural color grows back in.
   - _After three months without a salon visit, her gray roots were showing through the brown dye._
   - _Her blond highlights still looked fresh, but a half inch of dark root had already grown in._
12. The topmost directory of a file system, able to contain both files and subdirectories.
   - Simple: The top folder on a computer that holds all the other folders and files.
   - _The installer placed the configuration file at the root of the disk._
   - _Move up far enough through the folders and you reach the root._
13. In UNIX-like systems, the superuser account, with complete control over the operating system, conventionally user ID 0.
   - Simple: The special account on a UNIX computer that can control everything on it.
   - _Only root can install software for every user on the machine._
   - _She logged in as root to reset the forgotten passwords._
15. The single node at the top of a tree that has no parent node.
   - Simple: The top point of a tree-shaped diagram, which has nothing above it.
   - _Every tree in this structure has exactly one root._
   - _In a binary search tree, every lookup begins at the root and works downward._
18. A value that, when substituted for the unknown in an equation, makes the equation true; also, a value at which a function or polynomial equals zero.
   - Simple: A number that makes an equation true when put in place of the unknown, or makes a function zero.
   - _Substituting x = 3 makes the polynomial equal zero, so 3 is a root._
   - _Every quadratic equation has at most two real roots, and some have none at all._
20. The note on which a chord is built and from which it takes its name, such as C in a C major chord.
   - Simple: The main note that a chord is built on.
   - _In a C major chord, the root is C._
   - _Bass players often emphasize the root to anchor the harmony._
22. The bottommost place, position, or part of something.
   - Simple: The lowest part, place, or position of something.
23. The penis, especially the base of the penis. *(slang)*
   - Simple: A rude word for the penis, especially its base.
25. An act of sexual intercourse. *(slang, Australia, New Zealand)*
   - Simple: An act of having sex.
   - _He told his mates he hadn't had a root in months._
   - _They fell asleep after a long, lazy root._
26. A person considered as a sexual partner. *(slang, Australia, New Zealand)*
   - Simple: Someone you have sex with.
   - _He referred to her as his latest root._
   - _According to her mates, he was a good root but useless at everything else._

## Verb

3. To fix something firmly in place; to establish it securely.
   - Simple: To fix something firmly in place so that it stays.
   - _Years of hard work had rooted the small bakery firmly in the life of the neighborhood._
   - _Strong communities root their members in shared traditions._
5. To cheer on a person or team and hope for their success. *(US)*
   - Simple: To cheer for someone and hope they win or do well.
   - _Fans root for their side through every win and loss._
   - _I'm rooting for you to land that new job._
10. To put out roots and begin growing, as a plant settling into the soil; also, to make a cutting or plant do this.
   - Simple: To grow roots and start growing in the ground, or to help a cutting do this.
   - _Willow branches root quickly when pushed into damp earth._
   - _The seedlings rooted within days of being planted._
11. To eliminate or abolish something completely, as though pulling it out by the roots.
   - Simple: To get rid of something completely, as if pulling it out by the roots.
   - _The new coach promised to root out the bad habits that had cost the team so many games._
   - _Inspectors rooted out the unsafe practices across the factory._
16. To rummage or search through things, as if digging in soil.
   - Simple: To search for something by pushing things around, as if digging.
   - _Volunteers root through the donated clothes to sort them by size._
   - _She rooted around in the closet looking for her old coat._
14. To gain root or administrator-level access to a computer or phone, often by bypassing a security restriction. *(slang)*
   - Simple: To unlock full control of a phone or computer by getting past its security.
   - _You can root the tablet to install custom software._
   - _He rooted his old phone to delete the bundled apps._
19. To turn up or dig in the ground with the snout.
   - Simple: To dig in the ground using the nose, like a pig does.
   - _Pigs root in the soft earth for buried acorns._
   - _A wild boar rooted up the whole vegetable patch overnight._
21. Of a newborn or infant, to seek food by turning the head and opening the mouth.
   - Simple: When a baby turns its head and opens its mouth to look for milk.
   - _Newborns root instinctively when something brushes their cheek._
   - _The baby rooted toward her mother as soon as she was picked up._
24. To sexually penetrate someone. *(slang, Australia, Ireland, New Zealand)*
   - Simple: To penetrate someone sexually.
   - _I wouldn't root him for anything in the world._
   - _He claimed he'd rooted half the town._

## Other meanings

- (noun) The inner part of an aircraft wing, where it meets the fuselage.
- (noun) The bottom of the thread on a screw, bolt, or other threaded object.
- (verb) To try to win favor or get ahead by flattering others and acting in a servile way.
- (verb) Of a horse, to pull hard against the reins by jerking its head down against the bit.
- (noun) An act of digging around through things to find something.

## Origin

**Meanings 1–4, 6–10, 12–15, 17–18, 20, 22–23** — From Middle English rote or root, from late Old English rōt, borrowed from Old Norse rót, from Proto-Germanic *wrōts, and ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *wréh₂ds meaning "root." It is a doublet of wort, radish, and radix.
**Meanings 11, 16, 19, 21, 24–26** — Proto-Germanic *wrōtaną, meaning "to dig out, to root," and Proto-West Germanic *wrōtan led to Old English wrōtan and then Middle English wrōten, meaning to dig with the snout. Old English wrōt ("snout, trunk") is related. The word probably lost its initial w- under the influence of the related noun in Etymology 1.
**Meaning 5** — Hoot may have helped shape this word, which is perhaps an altered form of rout ("to make a loud noise").

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/root (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).