cereus
Americannoun
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any of various plants of the genus Cereus, of the cactus family, having large, usually white, funnel-shaped flowers.
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any of several related, similar plants, especially of the genera Hylocereus, Nyctocereus, and Selenicereus.
noun
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any tropical American cactus of the genus Cereus, esp C. jamacaru of N Brazil, which grows to a height of 13 metres (40 feet)
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any of several similar and related cacti, such as the night-blooming cereus
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of cereus
1720–30; < New Latin, Latin cēreus wax candle, noun use of cēreus cereous
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.
See Examples For:
"Testing for bacteria of the Bacillus cereus family is routinely offered," Francois Vigneau of lab testing firm Eurofins said last week.
From Barron's ● Jan. 31, 2026
It was suggested at the time that the feed was infected with Bacillus cereus bacterium.
From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2024
“B. cereus loves to grow in the warm and moist environment provided by cooked rice,” said Si Ming Man, a professor in the division of immunology and infectious diseases at the Australian National University.
From New York Times ● Jun. 17, 2024
In experiments using Bacillus cereus bacteria as a model, researchers observed the activity of the complex in the presence of phages to gain insight into how the defense system works.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 26, 2024
Flowers and climbing vines were everywhere, touched with the rich coloring of poinsettia and bougainvillea—although this very approach of day began to close the fragrant moon-flowers and spelled death to the night-blooming cereus.
From Wings of the Wind by Harris, Credo Fitch
The true night-blooming cereuses are species of the genus Cereus.
From Manual of Gardening (Second Edition) by Bailey, L. H. (Liberty Hyde)
C. grandiflorus and C. Macdonaldiae, the famous Night-blooming cereuses, have white flowers which remain open only one night.
From Gardening Indoors and Under Glass A Practical Guide to the Planting, Care and Propagation of House Plants, and to the Construction and Management of Hotbed, Coldframe and Small Greenhouse by Rockwell, F. F. (Frederick Frye)
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.
