ramose

The adjective "ramose" is used to describe things that are branched, as in "ramose sponges," "ramose corals," or even "ramose trees." This branching can also be figurative. "Ramose" was borrowed from the Latin ramosus ("branched") in the 17th century. In the 15th century, the Latin ramosus had also been borrowed by English, by way of the Middle French rameux, as "ramous," a word nearly identical in meaning and usage to "ramose." The root of "ramosus," the Latin noun ramus ("branch"), is also the source, by way of Medieval Latin ramificare and Middle French ramifier, of the English verb "ramify."