stapelia

[ stuh-pee-lee-uh ]

noun
  1. any of various plants of the genus Stapelia, of the milkweed family, native to southern Africa, having short, fleshy, leafless stems, and flowers that are oddly colored or mottled and in most species emit a fetid, carrionlike odor.

Origin of stapelia

1
1775–85; <New Latin, after J. B. van Stapel (died 1636), Dutch botanist; see -ia

Words Nearby stapelia

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British Dictionary definitions for stapelia

stapelia

/ (stəˈpiːlɪə) /


noun
  1. any fleshy cactus-like leafless African plant of the asclepiadaceous genus Stapelia, having thick four-angled stems and large typically fetid mottled flowers

Origin of stapelia

1
C18: from New Latin, named after J. B. van Stapel, (died 1636), Dutch botanist

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