Pap"pus (?), n. [L., an old man or grandfather; hence, a substance resembling gray hairs, Gr. .] Bot.

The hairy or feathery appendage of the achenes of thistles, dandelions, and most other plants of the order Compositae; also, the scales, awns, or bristles which represent the calyx in other plants of the same order.

© Webster 1913.