germander speedwell

American  

noun

1. a speedwell, Veronica chamaedrys, having blue flowers.

---

germander speedwell British  

noun

1. Usual US name: bird's-eye speedwell.  a creeping scrophulariaceous Eurasian plant, Veronica chamaedrys, naturalized in North America, having small bright blue flowers with white centres

---

Etymology

Origin of germander speedwell

First recorded in 1850–60

Example Sentences

Flowering examples of germander speedwell, daffodil and chicory cast shadows and consort with the odd caterpillar or beetle, surrounded by borders of more schematic leaf motifs that nonetheless have space for some quite real-looking birds.

From New York Times • Jun. 5, 2014

It was the germander speedwell that in literature and botanies alike was most commonly known as the forget-me-not for over two hundred years, or until only fifty years ago.

From Wild Flowers An Aid to Knowledge of Our Wild Flowers and Their Insect Visitors by Blanchan, Neltje

It was the germander speedwell that in literature and botanies alike was most commonly known as the forget-me-not for more than two hundred years, or until only fifty years ago.

From Wild Flowers Worth Knowing by Blanchan, Neltje

In the bunches of grass and by the gateways the germander speedwell looks like tiny specks of blue stolen, like Prometheus' fire, from the summer sky.

From The Life of the Fields by Jefferies, Richard

The primula is thus spoken of, on account of its yellow centre, also the adonis, or “pheasant’s eye,” and the blue veronica, or germander speedwell.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 3, Slice 7 "Bible" to "Bisectrix" by Various