dandelion clock

Blow to scatter

A dandelion clock is the spherical white seedhead of a dandelion after flowering, when the seeds are ready to disperse.

Children blow on them to tell time—the number of breaths needed to scatter all the seeds supposedly indicates the hour: It took four puffs to blow away the dandelion clock, so it must be four o'clock.

seedhead

pappus

Seed's dispersal tuft

blowballSeeded dandelion head
acheneClosed one-seeded fruit
fluffLight, soft fibers

plume · tuft · seeds · dispersal · florets · downy · feathery · sphere · globular · wispy

wishes

wishing

Desiring something hoped-for

blowingMoving air forcefully
childhoodLife's earliest phase
folkloreInherited cultural narratives

superstition · magic · ritual · luck · dreams · hope · tradition · innocence · whimsy · nostalgia

transience

fleeting

Passing very quickly

ephemeralLasting very briefly
momentaryLasting very briefly
passingMoving by or temporary

evanescent · vanishing · fading · dissipating · scattering · drifting · floating · airborne · windblown · impermanent

fragility

delicate

Easily broken or harmed

gossamerFilmy, delicate material
etherealDelicate beyond earthly measure
diaphanousDelicately translucent

wispy · airy · featherlight · insubstantial · brittle · tenuous · fragile · vulnerable · gauzy · sheer

timekeeping

counting

Determining quantity sequentially

hoursSixty-minute spans
puffsBrief expulsions of air
breathsCycles of air intake

game · divination · folklore · blows

dandelion clock

pappus

wishing

fleeting

delicate

counting

dandelion clock

Opposites

Categories

Family