Xylem
/ˈzaɪ.lɛm/noun
The vascular tissue in plants that carries water and dissolved minerals upward from the roots.
Did you know?The term was coined in the 19th century from Greek xýlon, meaning “wood,” because xylem is the woody tissue that forms the plant’s inner transport system.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*bʰel- / *kʷel-
“Ancient root family connected to wood and tree material in later branches”
Ancient Greek
Greek
ξύλον (xýlon)
“Wood, timber, a wooden object”
1830s
English
xylem
“A term coined for the water-conducting tissue of plants”
Modern English
English
xylem
“The plant tissue that conducts water and minerals”