The Poaceae family, also known as the grass family, is a large and ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants. It represents the fifth largest plant family, with over 12,000 species across 771 genera. Grasses are distinguished by their hollow, cylindrical stems with nodes and internodes known as culms, as well as simple, ligulate leaves. They produce small, hypogynous flowers with three stamens and a single carpel. Common examples of economically important grasses are sugarcane and rice, which provide food, oil, medicine, fodder, and building materials.