spathiphyllum

[ spey-thuh-fil-uhm, -thuh-, spath-uh- ]

noun

1. any of various tropical plants of the genus Spathiphyllum, having a white or green spathe and a spike of fragrant flowers and often cultivated as an ornamental.

Word History and Origins

Origin of spathiphyllum¹

< New Latin, equivalent to Greek spáth ( ē ) blade, spathe + New Latin -i- -i- (irregular for -o- ) + Greek -phyllon, neuter of -phyllos -phyllous, in reference to the leaflike appearance of the spathes