houseplant
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of houseplant
Explanation
A houseplant is a green, living thing you keep indoors. Your Boston fern, giant ficus, and Christmas cactus are all houseplants. If there are plants inside your house, they're houseplants, though you could also call them "potted plants" or "indoor plants." Most houseplants are tropical or semitropical, and if you live somewhere that gets colder during the winter, they need to be inside where it's warm. During the summer, some houseplants thrive on the patio or in the yard, but you'll need to bring them back into your house when the nights get cool.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
It is also a popular houseplant often given as a gift.
From Science Daily ● May 14, 2026
Well, there’s a different issue for houseplant parents who must wander their indoor jungles with watering cans, misters, fertilizers and pruners and then find a place to store them.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 3, 2024
A woman left bed-bound and unable to leave the house because of long Covid has rediscovered her passion for life by setting up a houseplant business.
From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2024
Oddly enough, when I try to grow it as a houseplant, it always succumbs to red spider mites.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 3, 2024
You never stayed long enough to get a pet or a houseplant or hang any paintings.
From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand
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