lantana

American  

[lan-tan-uh] / lænˈtæn ə /

noun

1. any of numerous chiefly tropical plants belonging to the genus Lantana, of the verbena family, certain species of which, as L. camara, are cultivated for their aromatic flowers of yellow and orange or blue and violet.

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lantana British  

/ -ˈtɑː-, lænˈteɪnə /

noun

1. any verbenaceous shrub or herbaceous plant of the tropical American genus Lantana, esp L. camara , having spikes or umbels of yellow or orange flowers. It has been widely introduced and is regarded as a troublesome weed in some places

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Etymology

Origin of lantana

1785–95; < New Latin < dialectal Italian lantana wayfaring tree

Example Sentences

They included exotic-sounding offerings such as white trailing lantana, orange flame gazania rigens and pink kaboom lampranthus — all chosen to satisfy the sculpture’s various sectional color requirements, marked “pupil,” “iris,” “pony dark” and more.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 24, 2025

Jason Reeves has been using the lantana, a flowering shrub, as a perennial in garden beds for the past few years.

From New York Times • Nov. 21, 2023

Australia's recent slate of brushfires has mostly left the county's rainforests unscathed, but that could change as the loss of Myrtaceae allows lantana to continue its spread.

From Salon • Jun. 7, 2020

Some just need to be replaced as the hot weeks wear on: The alyssum around the eyes, for example, might be replaced with vinca, or the bidens under the handles substituted for yellow flowering lantana.

From Washington Post • Apr. 11, 2018

When Abuela found his billfold in the bed of lantana he’d been weeding that afternoon—¡Ay-ay-ay!

From "Merci Suárez Changes Gears" by Meg Medina