Definition of "floret" [flo•ret]

• A small or reduced flower, especially one of the grasses and composite plants, such as a daisy. (noun)
• Any of the tight, branched clusters of flower buds that together form a head of cauliflower or broccoli. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "We can gain a grasp of this wonder of structure from a seed of groundsel or a sparrow's feather picked up in the street; for a spray of plumy meadowsweet or one dandelion floret is a poem in itself, and the sand particle is complex, curiously fashioned and polished."
• "The outermost part is a tough scab-like purple scale, but within is a tumid floret of a highly complex design."
• "Raise the heat to high, pour in the wine and cook 1 minute, then reduce the heat to simmer, cover the pan and cook until a knife is easily inserted into the stem end of a floret."