the main upright or bending part of a plant that supports the leaves, flowers, or fruit
The rose's stem was covered with tiny thorns.
Water travels up the stem to reach the leaves.
✦ Old English stemn “supporting trunk of a tree; prow of a ship”, from Proto-Germanic *stamniz.
the long thin part of an object such as a wine glass, pipe, or goblet that connects the base to the bowl or head
He held the champagne glass by the stem to keep the drink cold.
Dust gathered around the metal stem of the old lamp.
to stop or slow the flow or spread of something, especially liquid, people, or problems
He pressed a cloth on the wound to stem the bleeding.
New measures were introduced to stem the rise in fraud.
in linguistics, the main part of a word to which prefixes or suffixes are added
In “friendship,” “friend” is the word’s stem.
Removing the ending “-ed” from “walked” leaves the stem “walk.”
to start or develop as a result of something; to come from a particular cause or source
Her confidence stems from years of practice.
Their disagreement stemmed from a simple misunderstanding.
a group of connected parts that work together as a single whole
The solar system contains eight planets circling the Sun.
The city's new bus system links every neighborhood.
✦ From Latin ‘systema’, from Ancient Greek ‘sústēma’ meaning ‘organized whole’.
an educational field or program focusing on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
Many schools encourage girls to enter STEM careers.
He applied for a scholarship in STEM subjects.
✦ Coined in the early 2000s in the United States as an acronym of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics.
all the living things in a particular place, together with the air, water, and soil they depend on and the way they affect one another
The coral reef ecosystem supports thousands of colorful fish and plants.
When wolves returned to Yellowstone, the entire ecosystem changed in surprising ways.
✦ From eco-, a shortening of ecology, + system, first used in the 1930s to describe natural communities.
