What does "dehiscence" mean?

Opening of an organ by its own means (such as an anther or a seed pod) to release its contents.

What is a synonym for "dehiscence"?

Common synonyms include: gape, gaping, yawn, yawning.

//dɪˈhɪsəns// noun

noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Noun

1
Opening of an organ by its own means (such as an anther or a seed pod) to release its contents. countable, uncountable
2
(biology) release of material by splitting open of an organ or tissue; the natural bursting open at maturity of a fruit or other reproductive body to release seeds or spores or the bursting open of a surgically closed wound wordnet
3
A rupture, as with a surgical wound opening up, often with a flow of serous fluid. countable, uncountable
4
Opening, gaping, in a general sense. countable, rare, uncountable

From New Latin dehiscentia (in Linnaeus), from Latin dehiscentem, present participle of dehiscō. By surface analysis, dehisce + -ence.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.