buddleia

American  

[buhd-lee-uh, buhd-lee-uh] / bʌdˈli ə, ˈbʌd li ə /

noun

1. any shrub belonging to the genus Buddleia, of the logania family, having opposite, lance-shaped leaves and clusters of flowers, comprising the butterfly bushes.

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buddleia British  

/ ˈbʌdlɪə /

noun

1. Also called: butterfly bush. any ornamental shrub of the genus Buddleia , esp B. davidii , which has long spikes of mauve flowers and is frequently visited by butterflies: family Buddleiaceae

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Etymology

Origin of buddleia

< New Latin (Linnaeus), named after Adam Buddle (died 1715), English botanist; see -ia

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

buddleia

Certain species such as cow parsley, yarrow and knapweed are in fact spreading, and he welcomes an influx of non-native plants and "garden escapes", such as snowdrop and buddleia.

From BBC ● Oct. 30, 2025

Hummingbirds zipped in and out of a purple buddleia bush; Hugo, an eager-to-please Border collie, stretched out on the porch, smelling faintly of skunk.

From New York Times ● Oct. 14, 2022

Edinburgh’s old Royal Infirmary has been abandoned for more than a decade, its doors boarded up, its gutters overgrown with buddleia and fireweed.

From The Guardian ● Nov. 22, 2019

More people are buying buddleia for their gardens, but it's classified as an invasive species and is a problem on British railways.

From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2014

At the foot of the garden, behind a clump of gooseberry-bushes, stood an arbour formed of a yellow buddleia.

From Australia Felix by Henry Handel Richardson

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