streptocarpus

[ strep-tuh-kahr-puh s ]

/ ˌstrɛp təˈkɑr pəs /

noun

any of various plants belonging to the genus Streptocarpus, of the gesneria family, native to Africa and Asia, having showy white, pink, or purplish flowers and often cultivated as a houseplant.

Words nearby streptocarpus

strepsipterous, strepsirrhine, strepticemia, strepto-, streptobacillus, streptocarpus, streptocerciasis, streptococcemia, streptococcus, streptococcus erythrogenic toxin, streptococcus mutans

Origin of streptocarpus

< New Latin (1828); see strepto-, -carpous; so named in reference to the tight spirals formed by the ruptured seed capsules

Also called Cape primrose.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for streptocarpus

The pedicels of Streptocarpus Rexii have also been observed in a fasciated state.
Vegetable Teratology|Maxwell T. Masters
In species of Streptocarpus the cotyledons are permanent, and act the part of leaves.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 11, Slice 3|Various
Streptocarpus Wendlandii is a singularly interesting variety.
The Culture of Vegetables and Flowers From Seeds and Roots, 16th Edition|Sutton and Sons

British Dictionary definitions for streptocarpus

streptocarpus

/ (ˌstrɛptəˈkɑːpəs) /

noun

any plant of the typically stemless subtropical perennial genus Streptocarpus, some species of which are grown as greenhouse plants for their tubular flowers in a range of bright colours: family Gesneriaceae

Word Origin for streptocarpus

New Latin, from Greek streptos twisted + karpos fruit (from the shape of the capsule)

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