Definition of "pinnate" []

• Resembling a feather; having parts or branches arranged on each side of a common axis: a polyp with a pinnate form; pinnate leaves. (adjective)

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.

• ""That kind of veining is called pinnate veining from a Latin word that means 'feather,'" explained Helen."
• "Each leaf is full five yards in length, and of the kind called pinnate -- that is divided into numerous leaflets, each of which is itself more than a foot and a half long, shaped like the blade of a rapier."
• "The apparently compound ( "pinnate" or feather-shaped) leaves of many palms are not strictly compound; that is, they do not arise from the branching of an originally single leaf, but are really broad, undivided leaves, which are closely folded like a fan in the bud, and tear apart along the folds as the leaf opens."