palea

noun, plural pa·le·ae [pey-lee-ee] /ˈpeɪ liˌi/.

1. a chafflike scale or bract.
2. the scalelike, membranous organ in the flowers of grasses that is situated upon a secondary axis in the axil of the flowering glume and envelops the stamens and pistil.

noun plural paleae (ˈpeɪlɪˌiː) or pales botany

1. the inner of two bracts surrounding each floret in a grass spikeletCompare lemma 1
2. any small membranous bract or scale

Plural paleae (pā′lē-ē′)

1. The inner or upper of the two bracts enclosing one of the small flowers within a grass spikelet.
2. The chaffy scales on the receptacle of a flower head in a plant of the composite family.