# melliferous

> English word · Adjective · IPA /mɪˈlɪfəɹəs/

## Definitions
1. Of a plant or its parts: bearing any substance (such as nectar or pollen) which is collected by bees to produce honey.
2. Producing honey.
3. Honeyed, sweet.

## Etymology
PIE word
 *mélit
Learned borrowing from Latin mellifer (“honey-bearing, honey-producing, melliferous”) + English -ous (suffix forming adjectives denoting the presence of a quality, typically in abundance). Mellifer is derived from mel (“honey”) (plural form mella; ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *mélit (“honey”)) + -fer (suffix meaning ‘bearing, bringing, carrying’).

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/melliferous