['Flowthrough pretreatment is capable of removing much higher quantities of hemicellulose and lignin from lignocellulosic biomass than batch pretreatment performed at otherwise similar conditions. Comparison of these two pretreatment configurations for sugar yields and lignin removal can provide insights into lignocellulosic biomass deconstruction. Therefore, we applied liquid hot water (LHW) and extremely dilute acid (EDA, 0.05%) flowthrough and batch pretreatments of poplar at two temperatures and the same pretreatment severity for the solids. Composition of solids, sugar mass distribution with pretreatment, sugar yields, and lignin removal from pretreatment and enzymatic hydrolysis were measured.', 'Flowthrough aqueous pretreatment of poplar showed between 63 and 69% lignin removal at both 140 and 180\xa0°C, while batch pretreatments showed about 20 to 33% lignin removal at similar conditions. Extremely dilute acid slightly enhanced lignin removal from solids with flowthrough pretreatment at both pretreatment temperatures. However, extremely dilute acid batch pretreatment did realize greater than 70% xylan yields largely in the form of monomeric xylose. Close to 100% total sugar yields were measured from LHW and EDA flowthrough pretreatments and one batch EDA pretreatment at 180\xa0°C. The high lignin removal by flowthrough pretreatment enhanced cellulose digestibility compared to batch pretreatment, consistent with lignin being a key contributor to biomass recalcitrance. Furthermore, solids from 180\xa0°C flowthrough pretreatment were much more digestible than solids pretreated at 140\xa0°C despite similar lignin and extensive hemicellulose removal.'] Do flowthrough pretreatment with very dilute acid provides insights into high lignin contribution to biomass recalcitrance?