shepherd's-purse

American  

[shep-erdz-purs] / ˈʃɛp ərdzˈpɜrs /

noun

1. a European weed, Capsella bursa-pastoris, having white flowers and purselike pods, naturalized in North America.

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shepherd's-purse British  

noun

1. a plant, Capsella bursa-pastoris, having small white flowers and flattened triangular seed pods: family Brassicaceae (crucifers)

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Etymology

Origin of shepherd's-purse

late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

shepherd's-purse

The shepherd’s-purse is an admirable plant for the study of the development of the flower which is much the same in other angiosperms.

From Elements of Structural and Systematic Botany For High Schools and Elementary College Courses by Douglas Houghton Campbell

E. M. East has obtained evidence from maize and G. H. Shull from shepherd's-purse, which bears out the multiple factor hypothesis.

From Applied Eugenics by Paul Popenoe

But it showed the awl-shaped leaves, and thread-like stalk with its tiny round seed-vessels, like those of our common shepherd's-purse, and Jimmy knew it at once.

From Fishin' Jimmy by Annie Trumbull Slosson

At the verge of the ploughed field below, exposed as it is, chickweed, groundsel, and shepherd's-purse are flowering.

From The Open Air by Richard Jefferies

The shepherd’s-purse, already studied, belongs here, and may be taken as a type of the family.

From Elements of Structural and Systematic Botany For High Schools and Elementary College Courses by Douglas Houghton Campbell