From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishrootroot1 /ruːt/ ●●● S2 W2 noun [countable] 1 plantHBP 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. → root crop, root vegetable2 cause of a problemCAUSE the main cause of a problembe/lie at the root of something (=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 crime3 origin/main partCOME FROM/ORIGINATE the origin or main part of something such as a custom, law, activity etc, from which other things have developedroot 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 something the liberal economic policies which lie at the root of American power4 → somebody’s roots5 → put down roots6 tooth/hair etcHBH 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 root8 → have a (good) root round9 language technicalSLG 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’. → stem10 mathematics technicalHMN 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 → cube root, square root, grass roots
Examples from the Corpus
root• They usually have well developed roots and fragile stems with which to resist the pressure of the current.• But its roots go back decades.• I doubt whether you can have deep London roots, or Birmingham, or even Stoke-on-Trent roots.• The long roots of Water Lettuce provide shelter for fish and fry.• The dozen rich families have intermarried so many times that family trees are tangles of roots.• The word bond comes from the same root as bind, for the corporation binds it-self to make the specified payments.• The love of money is said to be the root of all evil.• Cover the roots with plenty of soil.• Low taxation of the rich is the root of the economic problems in this country.• Truffles are parasites that grow on the roots of trees.• We need to get to the root of the problem.• The roots of the wars in the Balkans go back hundreds of years.root causes• But Didion is interested in root causes, not in immediate provocations.• Like retrenching, the technique of restricting behavior betrays a peculiar logic about performance and its root causes.• The main inhibitors to progress, and the root causes of fear, can include: Unrealistic personal goals and expectations.• What are the root causes? 4.• The charity used the occasion to call for fresh action to tackle the root causes of world poverty.• Health promotion - keeping people healthy, and treating the root causes of ill health.• Some have their root causes in subjective factors, others in objective factors and others still are a mixture.• While standard educational practices are not in themselves root causes of work inhibition, these practices usually exacerbate the problem.be/lie at the root of something• As we shall find, this distinction lies at the root of Anselm's movements in his last years as archbishop.• It is our illusion of separateness which lies at the root of our fears.• Several other causes, according to their findings, often lie at the root of violence against tenants.• We found that two key resource uses and two basic technologies lay at the root of lunar industry.• That view lies at the root of a government drive against the racist right.• Consent, which lies at the root of self-determination, should be the conceptual mechanism whereby the right is guaranteed and safeguarded.• They overlook the human ability to negate, which lies at the root of thinking.• Biblical writings, which lie at the root of Western culture, make numerous mention of portents in the heavens.rootroot2 verb 1 plant a) [intransitive]HBP to grow roots New shrubs will root easily in summer. b) [transitive] if a plant is rooted somewhere, it is held in the ground firmly by its roots a bush firmly rooted in the hard groundroot itself Clumps of thyme had rooted themselves between the rocks.Grammar Root is either passive or reflexive in this meaning.2 → be rooted in something3 search [intransitive always + adverb/preposition]LOOK FOR to search for something by moving things around SYN rummageroot through/in/amongst something (for something) Leila rooted through her handbag for a pen.4 pigs [intransitive usually + adverb/preposition] if a pig roots somewhere, it looks for food under the groundroot for pigs rooting for truffles5 → rooted to the spot/floor/ground etc → root for somebody → root something ↔ out → root something ↔ up→ See Verb tableExamples from the Corpus
root• To begin with, though, it is the narrator, Austin, in whom our sympathies are rooted.• To prevent birds pulling them up, net the rows until they root and cut off any wispy tips.• He roots around in a deep drawer and comes out with a bright, brand-new-looking leather strap.• Saguaros in bloom, the glare of a horned owl and javelinas rooting for a bite to eat.• The bush was too firmly rooted in the hard earth to dig up easily.• A prime source of violence resides in the elitist educational strategies that are firmly rooted in the school ethos.• A crest of wavy, blond hair was loosely rooted on a magisterial forehead.• These include massacres and dislocation of civilians in the name of rooting out supposed guerrilla sympathizers.root itself• Thus, the root itself is at depth 0.root through/in/amongst something (for something)• His virtue was as much rooted in superstition as in goodness.• My love of nature, of life and of my country took root in these simple but spiritual beginnings.• Realism directed its challenge to the attempt to construct an autonomous science of law which was rooted in legal positivism.• Such abuses produced a deregulatory movement that took root in the Carter administration and flourished under Ronald Reagan.• The ban on giving the imagination and the mind free play is rooted in the fear of excessive individuality.• The Dundee disease has its roots in a virus called money.• The twelfth-century papacy was rooted in a distant and revered past.Origin root1 (1100-1200) Old Norse rot root2 1. (1200-1300) → ROOT12. Old English wrotan. root for (1800-1900) Perhaps from rout (of cattle) “to make a loud sound” ((14-19 centuries)), from Old Norse rauta 