There are 12 subfamilies:
Subfamily Anomochlooideae
Subfamily Pharoideae
Subfamily Puelioideae
Subfamily Bambusoideae
Subfamily Pooideae
Subfamily Ehrhartoideae
Subfamily Aristidoideae
Subfamily Arundinoideae
Subfamily Chloridoideae
Subfamily Panicoideae
Subfamily Danthonioideae
Subfamily Micrairoideae
The Poaceae (also called Gramineae or true grasses) are a large and nearly ubiquitous family of monocotyledonous flowering plants. With more than 10,000 domesticated and wild species, the Poaceae represent the fifth-largest plant family, following the Orchidaceae, Asteraceae, Fabaceae, and Rubiaceae. Though commonly called "grasses", seagrasses, rushes, and sedges fall outside this family. The rushes and sedges are related to the Poaceae, being members of the order Poales, but the seagrasses are members of order Alismatales.
Grasslands are estimated to compose 20% of the vegetation cover of the Earth. Poaceae live in many other habitats, including wetlands, forests, and tundra.
Domestication of poaceous cereal crops such as maize (corn), wheat, millets, and rice lay at the foundation of sedentary living and civilization around the world, and the Poaceae still constitute the most economically important plant family in modern times, providing forage, building materials (bamboo, thatch) and fuel (ethanol), as well as food.
Grasses generally have the following characteristics (the image gallery can be used for reference):
