Shape

Shape Outline Comparison Chart

Round:round:
2D shape—orbiculate; circular
Flat and roundround:
2D shape—orbiculate; circular
(discoiddiscoid:
3D shape—resembling a disc
) to sphericalspherical:
3D shape—globose
(globoseglobose:
3D shape—more or less spherical
). If notched, then may appear comma-shaped. Includes orbicularorbicular:
2D shape—circular in outline, 3D shape—globose
, oblateoblate:
depressed globose, flattened at both ends
, and lenslens:
a mound, pad, or area of tissue situated near the hilum on seeds in the Mimosoideae and Caesalpinioideae
-shaped (flat and roundround:
2D shape—orbiculate; circular
, with 2 biconvex sides).

Ellipticelliptic:
2D shape—oval, oblong-like with the 2 ends narrowing and more or less alike
: widest at the middle, with symmetrically pointed to rounded ends Includes ovaloval:
2D shape—elongate, widest at the middle, and symmetrically convex-attenuate to rounded ends
and ellipsoidalellipsoid:
3D shape—elliptic
.

Fusiformfusiform:
spindle-shaped; broadest at the middle and tapering at both ends
: roundround:
2D shape—orbiculate; circular
but elongated, tapering at both ends. Also known as spindleshaped.

Ovate/Obovate: widest at one end. Broader than lanceolatelanceolate:
2D shape—lance-shaped; much longer than wide, with widest point below the middle, tapering to the apex (compare oblanceolate)
, narrower end rounded to pointed. Includes ovoidovoid:
3D shape—ovate
, obovoidobovoid:
3D shape—obovate
, conicalconical:
3D shape—cone-shaped, with the point of attachment at the broad end
, and urceoloid.

Lanceolate/Oblanceolate: widest at one end, much longer than wide. Narrower than ovateovate:
2D shape—egg-shaped in outline, widest point is towards one end of the organ, the other end tapers gradually, attachment at or near the broad end (compare obovate, ovoid)
and more attenuate at the narrow end. Includes lanceoloidlanceoloid:
3D shape—lanceolate
, teardropshaped, turbinateturbinate:
3D shape—broadly obovoid-obconic
, pyriform, and flaskshaped.

Linear/Oblong: opposite sides are +/- parallel. Includes linearlinear:
(shape) long, narrow, and uniform in width; (of embryo) embryo is straight and much longer than wide
, oblongoblong:
2D shape—much longer than broad with nearly parallel sides, corners are rounded
, and cylindricalcylindrical:
3D shape—a cylinder, with parallel sides and a circular cross-section; tubular or rod-shaped
.

Triangulartriangular:
2D shape—three relatively straight sides with distinct corners; more angular than teardrop-shaped
: 3-sided. Includes trigonoustrigonous:
3D shape—having three faces that meet at distinct angles; triangular in outline
, deltoid, cuneate or cuneiformcuneiform:
wedge-shaped
, and wedge-shapedwedge-shaped:
2D shape—triangular and tapering to a point at the base
.

Sector-shaped: 2-flat and 1 curvedcurved:
(of embryo) linear embryo is curved into an arch or horseshoe with the ends far apart
sides. Sectoroidsectoroid:
3D shape—a wedge-shaped slice taken from an ovoid or globose structure (2D shape, sector-shaped)
if 3-D.

Angularangular:
2D shape—having sides that meet at acute or obtuse angles
: 4- to 5- shaped. Includes rectangular, quadrangularquadrangular:
2D shape - four-sided, as in a square or rectangle
, squaresquare:
2D shape—geometric figure bounded by 4 straight sides of equal length and 4 90º-angles
, cuboid, pentagonous, polygonalpolygonal:
angular
, and rhomboid.

Star shaped: having distal aspect like stylized shape like a star.

D-shaped+: center depressed or raised slightly to deeply. Includes reniformreniform:
2D or 3D shape—kidney-shaped
, Dshaped, heart-shapedheart-shaped:
2D or 3D shape—one end has prominent double curved into two lobes, the other end angular or pointed
, curvedcurved:
(of embryo) linear embryo is curved into an arch or horseshoe with the ends far apart
, C-shapedC-shaped:
2D-shape—semiannulate, curved into the shape of the letter 'C'
, crescent- shaped, falcatefalcate:
shaped like a scythe or sickle
, J-shaped, horseshoe-shapedhorseshoe-shaped:
3D shape—relatively slender and strongly compressed, the whole strongly curved over its length in a plane perpendicular to the direction of compression and forming an incomplete circle, the ends somewhat straighter than the rest and parallel or nearly so
, and U-shaped.

Knottedknotted:
3D shape—a cylindrical or ellipsoid body that is swollen and constricted at intervals; torulose
: cylindrical or ellipsoidellipsoid:
3D shape—elliptic
body, swollen and constricted at intervals. Includes torulose and moniliformmoniliform:
elongate, relatively slender, transversely round, and more or less regularly constricted over its length, the whole straight or variously curved; like a necklace of beads, see torulose
.

Irregular: spiral, contorted, coiledcoiled:
(of embryo) linear embryo is very long and bent to form a coil whereby one end of the embryo is on the outside and the other end near the middle of the seed
, didymousdidymous:
3D shape - paired, usually inflated and appears as two globose to ovoid halves pressed together
, mitiform, cymbiformcymbiform:
3D shape - boat-shaped, navicular
, panduriformpanduriform:
3D shape - fiddle-shaped, obovate with deep, rounded sinuses opposite one another
, campanulatecampanulate:
3D shape—bell-shaped, circular in cross-section, inflated proximally, broadening gradually until flared distally
, thimbleshaped, and flaskshaped.

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