butterwort

American  

[buht-er-wurt, -wawrt] / ˈbʌt ərˌwɜrt, -ˌwɔrt /

noun

1. any small, carnivorous plant of the genus Pinguicula, having leaves that secrete a viscid substance in which small insects are caught.

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butterwort British  

/ ˈbʌtəˌwɜːt /

noun

1. a plant of the genus Pinguicula , esp P. vulgaris , that grows in wet places and has violet-blue spurred flowers and fleshy greasy glandular leaves on which insects are trapped and digested: family Lentibulariaceae

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Etymology

Origin of butterwort

First recorded in 1590–1600; butter + wort ²

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

butterwort

The common butterwort is one of several plants which exude a sticky substance so that the leaves act like flypaper.

From Time Magazine Archive

By crossing a butterwort with a Venus's-flytrap, Seymour creates a new plant type, which he calls Audrey Jr. and which, it happens, feeds on human blood.

From Time Magazine Archive

The butterwort is but a 'prentice hand in the art of murder, and its intended victims often manage to get away from it.

From Little Masterpieces of Science: The Naturalist as Interpreter and Seer by George Iles

The leaves of the butterwort are apt to have their margins folded inward, like a rim or hem.

From Darwiniana; Essays and Reviews Pertaining to Darwinism by Asa Gray

Pinguicula, or butterwort, is the representative of this family upon land.

From Darwiniana; Essays and Reviews Pertaining to Darwinism by Asa Gray