What are the hallmarks of the cereal family?

Leaves of cereals, as a rule, are narrow, long, with parallel venation. Above the node from which the leaf departs, the stem covers the sheath – the wide base of the leaf, which looks like a tube.
The presence of a sheath in the leaf distinguishes cereals from plants of other families. At the place where the leaf blade leaves the vagina, there is a membranous outgrowth – a tongue. Obviously, it prevents water from entering between the stem and the vagina. The flowers of cereals, small and inconspicuous, form simple inflorescences – spikelets, which, in turn, often form complex inflorescences – a complex ear or panicle. Almost all cereals have two spikelet scales at the base of each spikelet. The number of flowers in spikelets is different for different cereals – from one to several. The flowers of most cereals have 2 flowering scales, 2 flowering films, 3 stamens and 1 pistil with two sessile shaggy stigmas. The seed coat grows together with the pericarp. The fruit is a weevil.