oxalis

[ok-suh-lis, ok-sal-is]

noun

any plant of the genus Oxalis, comprising the wood sorrels.

Nearby words

Origin of oxalis

1595–1605; < Latin: garden sorrel, sour wine < Greek oxalís, derivative of oxýs sharp

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for oxalis

Have you seeds of Oxalis sensitiva, which I see mentioned in books?
More Letters of Charles Darwin Volume II|Charles Darwin
Fra Angelico's use of the oxalis acetosella is as faithful in representation as touching in feeling.
Modern Painters Volume I (of V)|John Ruskin
For a hanging-basket use the oxalis, of which there are many beautiful varieties.
A Garden with House Attached|Sarah Warner Brooks
Can you spare me a good plant (or even two) of Oxalis sensitiva?
More Letters of Charles Darwin Volume II|Charles Darwin

Oxalis stricta (yellow wood-sorrel), 1853, at Smith's and his wood-path.
The Maine Woods|Henry David Thoreau

British Dictionary definitions for oxalis

oxalis

noun

any plant of the genus Oxalis, having clover-like leaves which contain oxalic acid and white, pink, red, or yellow flowers: family OxalidaceaeSee also wood sorrel

Word Origin for oxalis

C18: via Latin from Greek: sorrel, sour wine, from oxus acid, sharp

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