<p><strong>Noun</strong></p><ul><li>a part of the body of a plant that develops, typically, from the radicle and grows downward into the soil, anchoring the plant and absorbing nutriment and moisture.</li><li>a similar organ developed from some other part of a plant, as one of those by which ivy clings to its support.</li><li>any underground part of a plant, as a rhizome.</li><li>something resembling or suggesting the root of a plant in position or function: roots of wires and cables.</li><li>the embedded or basal portion of a hair, tooth, nail, nerve, etc.</li><li>the fundamental or essential part: the root of a matter.</li><li>the source or origin of a thing: The love of money is the root of all evil.</li><li>a person or family as the source of offspring or descendants.</li><li>an offshoot or scion.</li><li>Mathematics. Also called nth root. a quantity that, when raised to the nth power (multiplied by itself n times), produces a given quantity: The number 2 is the square root of 4, the cube root of 8, and the fourth root of 16.</li><li>a value of the argument of a function for which the function takes the value zero.</li><li>Computers. Also called root directory. the topmost directory of a hierarchical file system.</li><li>Grammar. a morpheme that underlies an inflectional or derivational paradigm, as dance, the root in danced, dancer, or ten-, the root of Latin tendere “to stretch.”</li><li>roots, a person's original or true home, environment, and culture: He's lived in New York for twenty years, but his roots are in France.</li><li>the personal relationships, affinity for a locale, habits, and the like, that make a country, region, city, or town one's true home: He lived in Tulsa for a few years, but never established any roots there.</li><li>personal identification with a culture, religion, etc., seen as promoting the development of the character or the stability of society as a whole.</li><li>Music. the fundamental tone of a compound tone or of a series of harmonies.</li><li>the lowest tone of a chord when arranged as a series of thirds; the fundamental.</li><li>Machinery. (in a screw or other threaded object) the narrow inner surface between threads.</li><li>(in a gear) the narrow inner surface between teeth.</li><li>Australian Informal. an act of sexual intercourse.</li><li>Shipbuilding. the inner angle of an angle iron.</li></ul><p><strong>Verb</strong></p><ul><li>(used with object) to fix by or as if by roots: We were rooted to the spot by surprise.</li><li>to implant or establish deeply: Good manners were rooted in him like a second nature.</li><li>to pull, tear, or dig up by the roots (often followed by up or out).</li><li>to remove completely; extirpate; exterminate (often followed by up or out): to root out crime.</li><li>Synonyms: eliminate, eradicate, obliterate, wipe out</li><li>Digital Technology. to gain access to the operating system of (a smartphone, tablet, gaming console, etc.), as to alter system files or settings.</li><li>to install a rootkit on (a computer, electronic device, etc.).</li><li>(used without object) to become fixed or established.</li><li>Digital Technology. to manipulate the operating system of a smartphone, tablet, etc.</li></ul>