dicentra

[ dahy-sen-truh ]

noun

any of several plants belonging to the genus Dicentra, of the fumitory family, having long clusters of drooping flowers, such as the Dutchman's breeches or the bleeding heart.

Origin of dicentra

1833; <New Latin <Greek díkentr(os) with two stings or spurs, equivalent to di-di-¹ + -kentros, derivative of kéntron a spur, point, sting (derivative of kenteîn to prick, sting) + Latin -a-a²

Words Nearby dicentra

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

How to use dicentra in a sentence

The arbutus and the dicentra appeared on the 10th, and the coltsfoot—which, however, is an importation—about the same time.
A Year in the Fields | John Burroughs
dicentra spectabilis (Bleeding Heart), red and white; one to two feet; May.
A Woman's Hardy Garden | Helena Rutherfurd Ely
Please look carefully at the enclosed specimen of dicentra thalictriformis, and throw away.
More Letters of Charles Darwin Volume II | Charles Darwin
A much more brilliantly coloured member of the same family is the dicentra (Diclytra) spectabilis, so familiar in our gardens.
The Contemporary Review, Volume 36, December 1879 | Various
Now, let me see—Aquilegia, Dianthus barbatus, dicentra spectabilis—gracious!
The Librarian at Play | Edmund Lester Pearson

British Dictionary definitions for dicentra

dicentra

/ (daɪˈsɛntrə) /

noun

any Asian or North American plant of the genus Dicentra, such as bleeding heart and Dutchman's-breeches, having finely divided leaves and ornamental clusters of drooping flowers: family Fumariaceae

Origin of dicentra

C19: New Latin, from Greek dikentros having two sharp points, from di- 1 + kentron sharp point, from kentein to prick; see centre

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

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