root

root¹ W2S3 [ru:t] n

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1¦(plant)¦

2¦(cause of a problem)¦

3¦(origin/main part)¦

4¦(family connection)¦

5 put down roots

6¦(tooth/hair etc)¦

7 take root

8 have a (good) root round

9¦(language)¦

10¦(mathematics)¦

11 root and branch

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[Date: 1100-1200; : Old Norse; Origin: rot]

1.) ¦(PLANT)¦

the part of a plant or tree that grows under the ground and gets water from the soil

▪ tree roots

▪ These plants produce a number of thin roots.

2.) ¦(CAUSE OF A PROBLEM)¦

the main cause of a problem

be/lie at the root of sth

(=be the cause of something)

▪ Allergies are at the root of a lot of health problems.

▪ The love of money is the root of all evil .

▪ A competent mechanic should be able to get to the root of the problem (=find out the cause of a problem) .

▪ the root causes of crime

3.) ¦(ORIGIN/MAIN PART)¦

the origin or main part of something such as a custom, law, activity etc, from which other things have developed

root in

▪ a legal system with roots in English common law

▪ Jazz has its roots in the folk songs of the southern states of the US.

be/lie at the root of sth

▪ the liberal economic policies which lie at the root of American power

4.) ¦(FAMILY CONNECTION)¦

sb's roots

your relation to a place because you were born there, or your family used to live there

▪ immigrants keeping in touch with their cultural roots

▪ Alex Haley's story about his search for his roots became a bestseller.

5.) put down roots

if you put down roots somewhere, you start to feel that a place is your home and to have relationships with the people there

▪ Because of her husband's job, they'd moved too often to put down roots anywhere.

6.) ¦(TOOTH/HAIR ETC)¦

the part of a tooth, hair etc that connects it to the rest of your body

▪ She'd pulled some of Kelly's hair out by the roots.

7.) take root

a) if an idea, method, activity etc takes root, people begin to accept or believe it, or it begins to have an effect

▪ Economists believe that economic recovery will begin to take root next year.

b) if a plant takes root, it starts to grow where you have planted it

8.) have a (good) root round

BrE informal to search for something by moving other things around

9.) ¦(LANGUAGE)¦

technical the basic part of a word which shows its main meaning, to which other parts can be added. For example, the word 'coldness' is formed from the root 'cold' and the ↑suffix 'ness'

→↑stem

10.)¦(MATHEMATICS)¦

technical a number that, when multiplied by itself a certain number of times, equals the number that you have

▪ 2 is the fourth root of 16.

11.) root and branch

if you destroy or change something root and branch, you get rid of it or change it completely and permanently because it is bad

▪ a root and branch reform of the electoral system

→↑cube root, ↑square root, ↑grass roots

root ²

root² v

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1¦(plant)¦

2 be rooted in something

3¦(search)¦

4¦(pigs)¦

5 rooted to the spot/floor/ground etc

Phrasal verbs

　root for somebody

　root something<=>out

　root something<=>up

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[Sense: 1-2, 4-5; Date: 1200-1300; Origin: ROOT¹]

[Sense: 3; Date: 1800-1900; Origin: Old English wrotan. root for Perhaps from rout (of cattle) 'to make a loud sound' (14-19 centuries), from Old Norse rauta]

1.) ¦(PLANT)¦

a)

to grow roots

▪ New shrubs will root easily in summer.

b) [T usually passive]

if a plant is rooted somewhere, it is held in the ground firmly by its roots

▪ a bush firmly rooted in the hard ground

root itself

▪ Clumps of thyme had rooted themselves between the rocks.

2.) be rooted in sth

to have developed from something and be strongly influenced by it

▪ The country's economic troubles are rooted in a string of global crises.

▪ This feeling of rejection is often deeply rooted in childhood.

3.) ¦(SEARCH)¦ [I always + adverb/preposition]

to search for something by moving things around

= ↑rummage root through/in/amongst sth (for sth)

▪ Leila rooted through her handbag for a pen.

4.) ¦(PIGS)¦ [I usually + adverb/preposition]

if a pig roots somewhere, it looks for food under the ground

root for

▪ pigs rooting for truffles

5.) rooted to the spot/floor/ground etc

so shocked, surprised, or frightened that you cannot move

▪ She stood rooted to the spot, staring at him.

root for [root for sb] [i]phr v

1.) to want someone to succeed in a competition, test, or difficult situation

▪ You can do it - I'm rooting for you.

2.) especially AmE to support a sports team or player by shouting and cheering

▪ the Los Angeles fans rooting for the Lakers

root out [root sth<=>out] phr v

1.) to find out where a particular kind of problem exists and get rid of it

▪ Action is being taken to root out corruption in the police force.

2.) to find something by searching for it

▪ I'll try and root out something for you to wear.

root up [root sth<=>up] phr v

to dig or pull a plant up with its roots