Gemmiferous
/ˌdʒɛmˈmɪfərəs/noun
Bearing gems or gem-like growths; producing buds.
Did you know?Gemmiferous entered English as a learned scientific word, built from Latin gemma (“bud, jewel”) plus -ferous (“bearing”), so one ancient root can mean both a plant bud and a precious stone.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*gem-
“to swell, bud; possibly the source of words for buds and gems”
Latin
Latin
gemma
“a bud, a gem, a precious stone”
Latin
Latin
-fer
“bearing, carrying”
Late Latin
Latin
gemmifer
“gem-bearing, jeweled”
16th–17th Century
English
gemmiferous
“bearing gems or gem-like growths”
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