ROOT

(botany) the usually underground organ that lacks buds or leaves or nodes; absorbs water and mineral salts; usually it anchors the plant to the ground

The place where something begins, where it springs into being

Example: "The italian beginning of the renaissance"

(linguistics) the form of a word after all affixes are removed

Example: "Thematic vowels are part of the stem"

A number that, when multiplied by itself some number of times, equals a given number

The set of values that give a true statement when substituted into an equation

Someone from whom you are descended (but usually more remote than a grandparent)

A simple form inferred as the common basis from which related words in several languages can be derived by linguistic processes

The embedded part of a bodily structure such as a tooth, nail, or hair