cattleya

[ kat-lee-uh, kat-lee-uh, -ley-uh ]

/ ˈkæt li ə, kætˈli ə, -ˈleɪ ə /

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noun

any of several tropical American orchids of the genus Cattleya, having showy flowers ranging from white to purple.

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of cattleya

1820–30; after William Cattley (died 1832), English botany enthusiast; see -a²

Words nearby cattleya

cattleship, cattle show, cattle-stop, cattle tick, cattle truck, cattleya, Catton, cat-train, catty, catty-cornered, cattywampus

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use cattleya in a sentence

Our Cattleya House is 187 feet long, 24 feet wide; glass screens divide it into seven compartments.
The Woodlands Orchids|Frederick Boyle
Here also is Cattleya bicolor Measuresiana, an exquisite example of a species always charming to my taste.
The Woodlands Orchids|Frederick Boyle
Cattleya Sanderiana was first discovered under circumstances rather odd.
The Woodlands Orchids|Frederick Boyle
Like Cattleya Schroderae it filled a gap when discovered in 1883, for there was no species at the time which flowered in July.
The Woodlands Orchids|Frederick Boyle

This was Cattleya Sanderiana—sometimes as much as eleven inches across; in colour, a tender rosy-mauve.
The Woodlands Orchids|Frederick Boyle

British Dictionary definitions for cattleya

cattleya

/ (ˈkætlɪə) /

noun

any tropical American orchid of the genus Cattleya, cultivated for their purplish-pink or white showy flowers

Word Origin for cattleya

C19: New Latin, named after William Cattley (died 1832), English botanist

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012