A modified leaf or leaf-like structure that grows near a flower or flowering stem, often smaller than regular leaves; also called a bract.
From Latin 'bractea' (a thin metal plate or leaf), originally referring to the thinness of these structures. The term was adopted into botanical nomenclature during the development of systematic plant classification.
Bracts often look like leaves but are actually highly modified structures, and in some plants like poinsettias, the showy colored parts everyone thinks are flower petals are actually bracts! The plant is cleverly using leaves as advertisements to attract pollinators.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.