scape

SKAYP

A leafless flower stalk rising directly from the ground — as in a dandelion, a daffodil, or an amaryllis. The scape carries the bloom above the basal leaves, lifting it into the wind or into the sight line of pollinators. Also: a landscape viewed as a composition, as in seascape, moonscape.

Etymology

Latin: scapus (stalk, stem, shaft), from Greek skapos (staff, rod). The landscape sense comes from Dutch -schap (-ship), a different root entirely — the two meanings converged in English by coincidence.

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