trailing arbutus

American  

[trey-ling ahr-byoo-tuhs] / ˈtreɪ lɪŋ ɑrˈbju təs /

noun

1. Also called mayflower.  Also called arbutus.  a creeping eastern North American plant, Epigaea repens, of the heath family, having leathery, oval leaves and terminal clusters of fragrant pink or white flowers: the state flower of Massachusetts.

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trailing arbutus British  

noun

1. Also called: mayflower.  a creeping evergreen ericaceous plant, Epigaea repens , of E North America, having clusters of fragrant pink or white flowers

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Etymology

Origin of trailing arbutus

First recorded in 1775–85

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

trailing arbutus

“Epigea” refers to Epigaea repens, commonly known as trailing arbutus or mayflower: a low-growing shrub that produces clusters of pink flowers.

From Slate ● May 17, 2016

By 1942, when Johnson retired, the first of Colby's new Georgian buildings blossomed amid the trailing arbutus on Mayflower Hill.

From Time Magazine Archive

Barbara and I explored Duxbury, not for clams, but for another sort of oldest inhabitant, the trailing arbutus.

From Pilgrim Trails A Plymouth-to-Provincetown Sketchbook by Warner, Frances Lester

The trailing arbutus trailed everywhere; the lady slippers grew even in the front dooryard.

From Fireside Stories for Girls in Their Teens by Eggleston, Margaret W. (Margaret White)

Let him compare our matchless, rosy-lipped, honey-hearted trailing arbutus with his own ugly ground-ivy; let him compare our sumptuous, fragrant pond-lily with his own odorless Nymphæa alba.

From A Year in the Fields by Burroughs, John