Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

phloem

/ˈfloʊ.əm/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.11 in modern English

Syllables
phloem
IPA
/ˈfloʊ.əm/
13
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
1
Syllables
6
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A vascular tissue in land plants primarily responsible for the distribution of sugars and nutrients manufactured in the shoot.

Countable; Uncountable

Etymology

First attested in 1872. From German Phloëm, coined by Swiss botanist Carl Nägeli in 1858 from Ancient Greek φλόος (phlóos, “husk, bark”) + a Greek-sounding ending -em (cf. System).

Origin

Word Breakdown

Regional Pronunciation

  • American English: /ˈfloʊ.əm/
  • British English: /ˈfləʊ.əm/

Usage

Inflected Forms

phloems (plural) phlœm (alternative) phloëm (alternative) phlöem (alternative)

Derived Forms

epiphloeum leptophloem metaphloem periphloem phloematic phloemic phloemlike phloeophagous protophloem

Phrases

citrus vein phloem degeneration

Frequently Paired Words

xylem

Synonyms

bast

Rhymes With

poem jeroboam proem

Questions

How do you pronounce phloem?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˈfloʊ.əm/.
What does phloem mean?
A vascular tissue in land plants primarily responsible for the distribution of sugars and nutrients manufactured in the shoot.
Where does phloem come from?
It is traced to German.

How to pronounce phloem

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “phloem”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈfloʊ.əm/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “phloem”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “phloem” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.