dryas

[ drahy-uhs ]

noun

, plural dry·as.

1. any creeping plant belonging to the genus Dryas, of the rose family, having solitary white or yellow flowers, comprising the mountain avens.

Word History and Origins

Origin of dryas¹

< New Latin, named after species of wood nymphs; dryad

Example Sentences

Temperatures plunged back toward nearly glacial-era conditions for a more than 1,000-year period known as the Younger Dryas, named for a wildflower that flourished in the frosty conditions of Europe in that era.

From MIT Technology Review

Colder and marshy situations, where there is no reflected heat, produce Pedicularis hirsuta and flammea, with Dryas octopetala.

From Project Gutenberg

But Dryas chasing a dog who had stolen some meat rushed out-doors, met Daphnis and brought him home.

From Project Gutenberg

The first signal from the mother, a mellow, solicitous coo-ee transforms them into immovable pebbles or tufts of dryas.

From Project Gutenberg

The mountain avens, Dryas octopetala, belongs to the same nat.

From Project Gutenberg

He played too the melody of Dionysus and to it Dryas footed the dance of the vintage.

From Project Gutenberg