acanthus family
noun
the plant family Acanthaceae, typified by tropical herbaceous plants and shrubs having simple opposite leaves, clusters of tubular bracted flowers, and seeds sometimes dispersed by exploding fruit, including the acanthus, caricature, and shrimp plant.
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Made-Up Words: Twitter’s Favorite Family MalapropismsJust about every family has a word that makes sense only to them. There's even an official term for this phenomenon: malapropism, a noun that means "an act or habit of misusing words ridiculously, especially by the confusion of words that are similar in sound." So, we asked Dictionary.com fans to share some of their favorite family malapropisms and explain their backstories.
Nearby words
- acanthosis nigricans,
- acanthous,
- acanthrocyte,
- acanthrocytosis,
- acanthus,
- acapnia,
- acapulco,
- acapulco gold,
- acarbose,
- acardia
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019