Dictionary.com

streptocarpus

[ strep-tuh-kahr-puhs ]
/ ˌstrɛp təˈkɑr pəs /
Save This Word!

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.
QUIZ
THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?
Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.
Question 1 of 7
In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…
Also called Cape primrose.

Origin of streptocarpus

<New Latin (1828); see strepto-, -carpous; so named in reference to the tight spirals formed by the ruptured seed capsules
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use streptocarpus in a sentence

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
FEEDBACK