spearwort

American  

[speer-wurt, -wawrt] / ˈspɪərˌwɜrt, -ˌwɔrt /

noun

1. any of several buttercups having lance-shaped leaves and small flowers, as Ranunculus ambigens, of the eastern U.S., growing in mud.

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spearwort British  

/ ˈspɪəˌwɜːt /

noun

1. any of several Eurasian ranunculaceous plants of the genus Ranunculus, such as R. flammula ( lesser spearwort ) and R. lingua ( great spearwort ), which grow in wet places and have long narrow leaves and yellow flowers See also buttercup

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Etymology

Origin of spearwort

before 1000; Middle English sperewort, Old English sperewyrt. See spear ¹, wort ²

Example Sentences

Tall trees droop over the calm water, and on its margins grow spearwort, opening its big yellow cups to the sunshine, meadow rue, purple and yellow loosestrife, bog bean, and sweet flag.

From Penelope's Irish Experiences by Wiggin, Kate Douglas Smith

The following purely Caucasian species also grow on the coast—five species of spearwort, three of saxifrage, Aster caucasica, Dioscorea caucasica, Echinops raddeanus, Hedera colchica, Helleborus caucasica and Peucedanum caucasicum.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 5, Slice 5 "Cat" to "Celt" by Various