the part of a plant that grows underground, absorbs water and minerals, and holds the plant in place
Jenny brushed the soil aside to see the carrot’s long root before pulling it up.
Tree roots spread wide underground to keep the huge oak standing during storms.
✦ Old English rōt, from Old Norse rót, related to German Wurzel, all meaning “root of a plant.”
the basic cause, origin, or source of something
Poverty is often at the root of many social problems.
They spent weeks trying to find the root cause of the computer error.
to shout encouragement and support for a person or team to succeed
Everyone in the stadium rooted for the home team during the finals.
I will root for you in the spelling bee tomorrow!
✦ American English, late 19th c.; possibly from earlier sense of ‘poke about, dig,’ extended to ‘give loud support.’
in mathematics, a number that when multiplied by itself a certain number of times gives another number, especially a square root
The square root of 25 is 5.
Engineers needed to find the cube root of the volume to calculate the side length.
(of a plant or cutting) to begin growing roots or to become firmly fixed in place
The rosemary cutting rooted after two weeks in water.
Wildflowers quickly root in cracks between the pavement slabs.
to dig, poke, or search around, often by turning things over, in order to find something
The pig rooted in the dirt looking for truffles.
He rooted through the drawer to find a spare battery.
in computing, the highest-level directory or an account with complete control over a system
Only the administrator has access to the root directory.
She used the root account to install the new server software.
the ordinary people who form the main body of an organization such as a political party, as opposed to its leaders
The grassroots are calling for new leadership.
Support from the grassroots will decide the election.
✦ From 'grass' + 'roots'; the literal roots of grass are at the fundamental, bottom level of the plant, metaphorically extended to the ordinary people at the base of a hierarchy in the early 20th century.
relating to or involving the ordinary people in an organization or community, rather than its leaders
They organized a grassroots campaign against pollution.
Grassroots efforts built the community center.
