lady's-slipper
Americannoun
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any orchid of the genus Cypripedium, the flowers of which have a protruding petal somewhat resembling a slipper: all species are reduced in numbers, some greatly.
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any of several other related plants having similar flowers, as of the genera Paphiopedilum and Phragmipedium.
noun
Etymology
Origin of lady's-slipper
An Americanism dating back to 1830–40
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.
Like the ivy, the yellow lady's-slipper does not poison every one.
From On the Trail An Outdoor Book for Girls by Lina Beard
The spring-beauty, the painted trillium, the fringed polygala, the showy lady's-slipper, are all more striking to look upon, but they do not quite touch the heart; they lack the soul that perfume suggests.
From The Wit of a Duck and Other Papers by John Burroughs
Show a botanist a landscape, and he will tell you where to look for the lady’s-slipper, the columbine, or the harebell.
From Wake-Robin by John Burroughs
The possessive case and its governing noun, combining to form a metaphorical name, should be written with both apostrophe and hyphen; as, Job's-tears, Jew's-ear, bear's-foot, colts-tooth, sheep's-head, crane's-bill, crab's-eyes, hound's-tongue, king's-spear, lady's-slipper, lady's-bedstraw, &c.
From The Grammar of English Grammars by Goold Brown
You could have knocked me down with a lady's-slipper.
From Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great - Volume 12 Little Journeys to the Homes of Great Scientists by Elbert Hubbard
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
