Liberal Dictionary English Dictionary
sinistrorse [sin-uh-strawrs, si-nis-trawrs, sin-uh-strawrs] EXAMPLES|WORD ORIGIN adjective Botany. (from a point of view at the center of the spiral) rising spirally in a counterclockwise manner, as a stem (opposed to dextrorse). Liberaldictionary.com
Origin of sinistrorse 1855–60; Latin sinistrōrsus literally, turned leftwards, contraction of *sinistriversus. See sinister, versus Related formssin·is·trorse·ly [sin-uh-strawrs-lee, sin-uh-strawrs-] /ˈsɪn əˌstrɔrs li, ˌsɪn əˈstrɔrs-/, adverb Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019 Examples from the Web for sinistrorse Historical Examples of sinistrorse
Sinistrorse, sin′is-trors, adj. rising from left to right, as a spiral line.
Chambers’s Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 4 of 4: S-Z and supplements)
Various
British Dictionary definitions for sinistrorse sinistrorse adjective (of some climbing plants) growing upwards in a spiral from right to left, or clockwiseCompare dextrorse Derived Formssinistrorsal, adjectivesinistrorsely, adverbWord Origin for sinistrorse C19: from Latin sinistrōrsus turned towards the left, from sinister on the left + vertere to turn Collins English Dictionary – Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012 Word Origin and History for sinistrorse adj.
1856, a word wanted by the botanists to describe the direction of spiral structures in nature, from Latin sinistrorsus “toward the left side,” from sinister “left” (see sinister). It was paired with dextrorse but confusion over what was the proper point of view to reckon leftward or rightward spiraling prevented the word being as useful as it might have been.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
