ceanothus

American  

[see-uh-noh-thuhs] / ˌsi əˈnoʊ θəs /

noun

ceanothuses plural

1. any North American shrub or small tree of the largely western genus Ceanothus, having clusters of small white or blue flowers.

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ceanothus British  

/ ˌsiːəˈnəʊθəs /

noun

1. any shrub of the North American rhamnaceous genus Ceanothus: grown for their ornamental, often blue, flower clusters

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• ceanothuses
  plural

Etymology

Origin of ceanothus

< New Latin (Linnaeus) < Greek keánōthos a species of thistle

Example Sentences

“The question everybody wants answered we can’t answer because we don’t have the data to do it,” said Adrian Das, research ecologist with the Western Ecological Research Center, as he stood amid the ceanothus.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 13, 2026

“Some plants, like heather, blue fescue, lavender, nandina and ceanothus, tend to not be long lived in an urban landscape,” Goetz observes.

From Seattle Times • May 18, 2024

This includes Mediterranean sub-shrubs such as germander, rosemary and lavender, as well as West Coast native evergreen huckleberry, ceanothus and mock orange, all of which furnish the garden with structure, blooms and fragrance.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 22, 2023

Williams’ landscape “canvas” is relatively small, but lushly filled with 20 varieties of California native plants — salvias, ceanothus, buckwheats, mallows and such perennials as monkey flower and yarrow.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 10, 2022

She planned to plant a clump of ceanothus along the approach to the swimming pool.

From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan