[Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) · [this page in HTML](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/roots.html)

[home](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/) / [dictionaries](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/) / [The school dictionary](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/) / roots

[← R](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/R/)

# roots

«roots» in Mova's school dictionary: **the parts of a plant that grow under the ground; they…** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 5 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

### part of speech

noun (roots, plural of root; root — a root); verb (roots, from root)

### meaning for a pupil

1) Roots are the parts of a plant that grow under the ground; they hold the plant in place and take in water and minerals. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/roots/#m1)

2) The roots of a tooth or hair are the parts that hold it in the body. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/roots/#m2)

3) Your roots are the place and family you come from. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/roots/#m3)

4) The roots of a problem are where it starts. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/roots/#m4)

5) In maths, a root of a number, like the square root, is a number that multiplies by itself to give that number. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/roots/#m5)

### sense in the lessons

In science roots anchor plants and take up water; carrots and potatoes are roots or underground parts we eat; tree roots can crack pavements. In everyday life, people say they have Irish or Greek roots (family history). In English lessons, a root word is the main part of a word before prefixes and suffixes are added (happy is the root of unhappiness). In maths the square root of 9 is 3 because 3 × 3 = 9.

### examples

- The roots take in water from the soil. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/roots/#x1)
- Tree roots lifted up the pavement. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/roots/#x2)
- Carrots are roots that we eat. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/roots/#x3)
- My family has roots in Scotland. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/roots/#x4)
- «Kind» is the root word of «kindness». [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/roots/#x5)
- The square root of 16 is 4. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/roots/#x6)
- The dentist said the tooth's root was healthy. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/roots/#x7)
- We need to find the roots of the problem. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/roots/#x8)
- Meet here beneath this ash-tree's roots. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/roots/#x9)

### note

Singular «root», plural «roots». «Take root» = start to grow. Homophone: «route» (a way to travel) is often said «root» in the UK. In maths the square root sign is √; √25 = 5. Not all things underground are roots: a potato is a tuber (a swollen stem).

### In the corpora

- [Wetlands soak up flood water like giant sponges and let it out slowly, and reed roots trap mud and clean the water.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/11-swamps-marshes-mangroves-and-bogs/17/)
- [Soil gives plants water, grip for their roots and minerals such as nitrogen; without minerals plants grow small and yellow.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/56-how-plants-grow/12/)
- [Plants grow mainly at the tips of their shoots and roots, and some bamboos can grow nearly a metre in a day.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/56-how-plants-grow/14/)
- [Stems have thin tubes that carry water up from the roots, and other tubes that carry sugar round the plant.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/57-roots-stems-and-leaves/7/)
- [Buttress roots spread out like walls around many rainforest trees and hold the tall tree up in thin soil.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/biology/157-the-amazon-forest-floor/14/)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every meaning and example of «roots» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/roots/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.