water lettuce

American  

noun

1. a floating aquatic plant, Pistia stratiotes, of the arum family, having a rosette of thick, spongy leaves.

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Etymology

Origin of water lettuce

First recorded in 1865–70

Example Sentences

Water hyacinth, water lettuce, water lily and cattails went in and around the goldfish pond.

From Washington Times

They lay their eggs on water lettuce — invasive weeds that float in the canals, drainage ditches and other waterways crisscrossing Florida neighborhoods.

From Seattle Times

Another Lab was able to detect invasive water lettuce, which is prohibited to import to Florida, contained within an unmarked box at a South Florida postal facility.

From Washington Times

Giant pine trees draped with moonseed vines towered over an Everglades-wet forest floor blanketed with gingers, ferns, duckweed, water lettuce and floating, flowering plants.

From New York Times

More worrisome was the discovery this spring that another invasive aquatic plant, commonly called water lettuce, had survived the winter.

From New York Times