n. 1. Botany The stalk by which a leaf is attached to a stem. Also called leafstalk. 2. Zoology A slender, stalklike part, as that connecting the thorax and abdomen in certain insects. [Latin petiolus, variant of peciolus, little foot, fruit stalk, probably from *pediciolus, diminutive of pediculus; see PEDICEL.] peti·oled′ adj. |
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