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cow parsnip

noun

any of several tall, coarse plants of the genus Heracleum, of the parsley family, as H. sphondylium or H. lanatum, having large, flat clusters of white flowers.

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Origin of cow parsnip

First recorded in 1540–50

Words nearby cow parsnip

cowl neckline, cowman, coworker, coworking, cow parsley, cow parsnip, cowpat, cowpea, Cowper, cowperitis, Cowper's gland
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for cow parsnip

  • You made up your mind he was a lily of the valley and it was no good his being a cow-parsnip.

    Sons and Lovers|David Herbert Lawrence

  • You made up your mind he was a lily of the valley, and it was no good his being a cow-parsnip.

    Sons and Lovers|David Herbert Lawrence

  • It feeds, in the autumn, on flowers and seeds of angelica and cow-parsnip, but the former is its chief food.

    The Moths of the British Isles, Second Series|Richard South

British Dictionary definitions for cow parsnip

cow parsnip

noun

any tall coarse umbelliferous plant of the genus Heracleum, such as H. sphondylium of Europe and Asia, having thick stems and flattened clusters of white or purple flowersAlso called: hogweed, keck
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