houseleek

American  

[hous-leek] / ˈhaʊsˌlik /

noun

1. Also called old-man-and-old-woman.  a succulent plant, Sempervivum tectorum, of the stonecrop family, native to Europe, having reddish flowers and leaves forming dense basal rosettes.

2. any other plant of the genus Sempervivum.

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houseleek British  

/ ˈhaʊsˌliːk /

noun

1. Also called: hen-and-chickens.  any Old World crassulaceous plant of the genus Sempervivum, esp S. tectorum, which has a rosette of succulent leaves and pinkish flowers: grows on walls

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Etymology

Origin of houseleek

First recorded in 1325–75, houseleek is from the Middle English word howsleke. See house, leek

Example Sentences

Surviving with him are a few sempervivums, or everlivings�among them the European houseleek, sometimes known as "hen and chickens"�a proper plant for this chickenhearted man.

From Time Magazine Archive

Ivy for burns, comfrey for fever, foxglove for heart pain, laurel leaves for ringworm, houseleek for the eyes, the web of a spider for bleeding.

From "Nory Ryan’s Song" by Patricia Reilly Giff

Mabel had planted her one houseleek, and it was with faithful exertion she kept it from covering her whole nature.

From Mabel's Mistake by Stephens, Ann S. (Ann Sophia)

There's a bit of houseleek on those tiles.

From Lippincott's Magazine of Popular Literature and Science, Volume 22. October, 1878. by Various

The houseleek, however, is a singular plant, worthy of examination; it has an old-world look, as if it had survived beyond its date into the nineteenth century.

From The Life of the Fields by Jefferies, Richard