POL 



332 



POL 



polyandrous, a^ptil'i-and'-rus (Gr. 

 polus, many ; oner, a male, 

 andros, of a male), having more 

 than twenty stamens, as a flower. 



Polyanthes, n., pW>t-&nth'-& (Gr. 

 polus, many ; anthos, a flower), 

 a genus of showy garden flowers, 

 Ord. Liliacese : Polyanthes tub- 

 erosa, tub-^r-oz^d (L. tuberosus, 

 having fleshy knots from tuber, 

 a protuberance), the tube-roses, 

 prized for their fragrance, and 

 beauty of their flowers. 



Polyanthus, n., ptil'-i-anth'-us (Gr. 

 polus, many ; anthos, a flower), 

 a favourite garden flower, a variety 

 of the Primrose, Primula vulgaris, 

 Ord. Primulaceae. 



polycarpic, a., ptil'-i'Tcarp'-ik, also 

 polycarpous, a., ptil'i-kdrp'-tis 

 (Gr. polus, many ; Icarpos, fruit), 

 in hot. , having the carpels distinct 

 and numerous, each flower bearing 

 several fruit ; applied to plants 

 which flower and fruit many 

 times in the course of their life. 



polychroite, n., pdl'i-krd'U (Gr. 

 polus, many ; chrdizo, I colour), 

 the yellow colouring matter of 

 Saffron, which exhibits a variety 

 of colours when acted upon by 

 various re-agents, and is totally 

 destroyed by the action of the 

 solar rays: polychrome, n., 

 pol^-Tcrom (Gr. chroma, colour), 

 a substance obtained from the 

 bark of the horse-chestnut, and 

 from quassia-wood, which gives 

 to water the quality of exhibiting 

 a curious play of colours when 

 acted upon by reflected light. 



polycotyledon, pd'l'-i-ko't'il'ed'-dn 

 (Gr. po f us, many ; kotuledon, a 

 hollow vessel), a plant the seeds 

 of which have more than two 

 lobes : polycotyledonous, a. , -il- 

 ed'tin-us, applied to an embryo 

 having many cotyledons, as in 

 Firs ; having more than two 

 cotyledons or seed-lobes : poly- 

 cotyledony, n., pdl'-i-ktit'-il-ed'- 

 dn-%, an accidental increase in the 

 number of cotyledons. 



Polycystina, n^pWi-sist'-tn-a (Gr. 

 polus, many; Jcustis, a bladder), 

 an Order of Protozoa with foram- 

 inated siliceous shells. 



polydipsia, n., pBM-dtptfW (Gr. 

 polus, much ; dipsa, thirst), 

 excessive thirst. 



polyembryony, n., ptil'-i-Vm-br* 

 8n'i (Gr. polus, many ; embruon, 

 an embryo), in bot., an increase 

 in the number of embryos in a 

 seed : polyembryonic, a., -bri- 

 tin'-ik, having more than one 

 embryo. 



Polygalacese, n. plu., ptil'-i-gal'd* 

 s$-e (Gr. polus, much ; gala, 

 milk), the Milkwort family, an 

 Order of plants, generally bitter, 

 their roots yielding a milky 

 juice: Polygala, n., p8l-ig'dl>a, , 

 an extensive genus, all whose 

 species are showy : Polygala i 

 senega, sZn'&g-d (of or from. 

 Senegal), the Senega or Snake- - 

 root, used in large doses as an 

 emetic and cathartic, in smaller 1 

 doses as a stimulant, sudorific, . 

 and expectorant, named snake- 

 root as a supposed antidote to 

 the bite of the rattlesnake : 

 polygalic acid, polity- dl'ik, an. 

 acrid principle obtained from it. 



polygamous, a., pdl-ig'dm-us (Gr. 

 polus, many ; gamds, a marriage), 

 in bot., bearing hermaphrodite 

 flowers, as well as male and female 

 flowers, on the same plant. 



Polygonacese, n. plu., ptiftf*ff8n& 

 a'-s&e (Gr. polus, many ; gonu, . 

 the knee), the Buckwheat family, 

 an Order of plants, so named 

 from the numerous joints of the 

 stems, have astringent and acid 

 properties : Polygonese, n. plu. , 

 ' a tribe or Sub- 



order : Polygonum, n., pol-ig'- 

 tin- urn, a genus of plants : Polyg- 

 onum bistorta, bis-ttirt'-a (L. 

 bis, twice ; tortm, twisted), a 

 species whose root or rhizome, 

 which contains much tannin, 

 some galic acid, and some starch, 

 is a powerful astringent, so 



