speedwell

[speed-wel]

noun

any of several plants, shrubs, or small trees of the genus Veronica, of the figwort family, having opposite leaves and small flowers.

Origin of speedwell

1570–80; speed + well¹; so called because its petals fade and fall early

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Examples from the Web for speedwell

Historical Examples of speedwell

The Speedwell had been forced to put back in a disabled condition.
The Nation in a Nutshell
George Makepeace Towle
The Goodhope and the Speedwell, he found, had gone back to Gram.
Space Viking
Henry Beam Piper
They secured for their voyage two ships, the Speedwell and the Mayflower.
The Landing of the Pilgrims
Henry Fisk Carlton
All boys who love to be on the go will welcome the Speedwell boys.
Fred Fenton on the Track
Allen Chapman
She had returned to her old ally, Arthur Payne, who designed her the Speedwell.
The Sportswoman's Library, v. 2
Various

British Dictionary definitions for speedwell

speedwell

noun

any of various temperate scrophulariaceous plants of the genus Veronica, such as V. officinalis (heath speedwell) and V. chamaedrys (germander speedwell), having small blue or pinkish white flowers

Word Origin for speedwell

C16: from speed + well 1

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