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pod 1 (pŏd)
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n.
1. Botany
a. A dehiscent fruit of a leguminous plant such as the pea, splitting along two sides.
b. A dry, several-seeded, dehiscent fruit. Also called seedpod.
2. Zoology An egg case of certain insects, especially a locust or other orthopteran.
3. Geology An deposit of rock or sediment that is much longer than it is wide.
4. A casing or housing forming part of a vehicle, as:
a. A streamlined external housing that encloses engines, machine guns, or fuel.
b. A detachable compartment on a spacecraft for carrying personnel or instrumentation.
5. Something resembling a pod, as in compactness.
v. pod·ded, pod·ding, pods
v.intr.
1. To bear or produce pods.
2. To expand or swell like a pod.
v.tr.
To remove (seeds) from a pod.
[Origin unknown.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2020 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
 
pod 2 (pŏd)
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n.
A group of marine mammals, such as whales, or of certain other animals, such as hippopotamuses.
[Origin unknown.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2020 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
 
pod 3 (pŏd)
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n.
1. The lengthwise groove in certain boring tools such as augers.
2. The socket for holding the bit in a boring tool.
[Origin unknown.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2020 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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