nasturtium

[ na-stur-shuh m, nuh- ]

/ næˈstɜr ʃəm, nə- /

noun

any plant of the genus Tropaeolum, cultivated for its showy, usually orange, red, or yellow flowers or for its fruit, which is pickled and used like capers.

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Origin of nasturtium

First recorded in 1560–70, nasturtium is from the Latin word nāsturtium, nāsturcium a kind of cress, taken to mean, perhaps by folk etymology, something that wrings the nose (referring to its acrid smell). See nose, tort, -ium

Words nearby nasturtium

nasser, gamal abdel, nast, nastase, nastic, nastic movement, nasturtium, nasty, nasus, nasute, nat, nat.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for nasturtium

These must be only just covered by a very fine sprinkling of earth; but sweet-pea and nasturtium must be sown deeper.
What Shall We Do Now?: Five Hundred Games and Pastimes|Dorothy Canfield Fisher
Serve in a bowl garnished with nasturtium leaves and flowers.
A Thousand Ways to Please a Husband|Louise Bennett Weaver
Pile in a mound on a serving-dish, dust with chopped parsley, and garnish with a wreath of nasturtium blossoms and leaves.
Salads, Sandwiches and Chafing-Dish Dainties|Janet McKenzie Hill
This is prettily shown if we place some of our Nasturtium seedlings under a ward-case.
Outlines of Lessons in Botany, Part I; From Seed to Leaf|Jane H. Newell

It is easy enough to keep the nasturtium bed weeded for the seedlings are large and not to be mistaken.
The Library of Work and Play: Gardening and Farming.|Ellen Eddy Shaw

British Dictionary definitions for nasturtium

nasturtium

/ (nəˈstɜːʃəm) /

noun

any of various plants of the genus Tropaeolum, esp T. major, having round leaves and yellow, red, or orange trumpet-shaped spurred flowers: family Tropaeolaceae

Word Origin for nasturtium

C17: from Latin: kind of cress, from nāsus nose + tortus twisted, from torquēre to twist, distort; so called because the pungent smell causes one to wrinkle one's nose

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012