Venus flytrap

American  

[vee-nuhs flahy-trap] / ˈvi nəs ˈflaɪˌtræp /

noun

1. a carnivorous plant, Dionaea muscipula, native to bogs of North Carolina and South Carolina, having roundish leaves with two lobes that close like a trap when tiny, sensitive hairs on their inner surfaces are irritated, as by a fly: classified as a vulnerable species and currently known to exist naturally only in sites within 56 miles (90 kilometers) of Wilmington, North Carolina.

---

Etymology

Origin of Venus flytrap

First recorded in 1925–30

Example Sentences

I can always sit down and rewatch Michael Sheen describe his character Aro as a Venus flytrap with an unhinged quality, mirrored by his own devilish grin and flashing eyes.

From Salon • Nov. 14, 2023

But John Lewis's commercial, released on Thursday, instead tells the tale of a little boy and a Venus flytrap.

From BBC • Nov. 8, 2023

Everything from crayfish and cacti to freshwater mussels and iconic American species such as the Venus flytrap are in danger of disappearing, a report released on Monday found.

From Reuters • Feb. 6, 2023

This is not the first time scientists have controlled a Venus flytrap.

From Scientific American • Mar. 1, 2022

Like flies in a Venus flytrap, they were immediately swallowed up by the crowd of more than fifty men.

From "Moon Over Manifest" by Clare Vanderpool