trailing plant having crowded clusters of 3 brilliant deep pink flowers resembling a single flower blooming near the ground; found in dry gravelly or sandy soil; southwestern United States and Mexico
(Roman Catholic Church) the bishop of Caesarea who defended the Roman Catholic Church against the heresies of the 4th century; a saint and Doctor of the Church (329-379)
a sandy promontory (formerly Cape Kennedy) extending into the Atlantic Ocean from a barrier island off the eastern coast of Florida; the site of a NASA center for spaceflight
European hawthorn having deeply cleft leaves and bright red fruits; widely cultivated in many varieties and often grown as impenetrable hedges; established as an escape in eastern North America
common greyish-brown burrowing animal native to southern Europe and northern Africa but introduced elsewhere; widely domesticated and developed in various colors and for various needs; young are born naked and helpless
an intricate knot tied by Gordius, the king of Phrygia, and cut by the sword of Alexander the Great after he heard that whoever undid it would become ruler of Asia
lichen with branched flattened partly erect thallus that grows in mountainous and Arctic regions; used as a medicine or food for humans and livestock; a source of glycerol
tall symmetrical pine of western North America having long blue-green needles in bunches of 3 and elongated cones on spreading somewhat pendulous branches; sometimes classified as a variety of ponderosa pine
tall perennial grass that spreads by creeping rhizomes and is grown for fodder; naturalized in southern United States where it is a serious pest on cultivated land
valuable meadow and pasture grass in Europe and especially central United States having tall stalks and slender bright green leaves; a chief constituent in lawn grass mixtures
a series of wars fought between France (led by Napoleon Bonaparte) and alliances involving England and Prussia and Russia and Austria at different times; 1799-1815
a Turkish sultanate of southwestern Asia and northeastern Africa and southeastern Europe; created by the Ottoman Turks in the 13th century and lasted until the end of World War I; although initially small it expanded until it superseded the Byzantine Empire
pressure applied anywhere to a body of fluid causes a force to be transmitted equally in all directions; the force acts at right angles to any surface in contact with the fluid
tall thornless shrub having pale yellow flowers and flexible rushlike twigs used in basketry; of southwestern Europe and Mediterranean; naturalized in California
dense festoons of greenish-grey hairlike flexuous strands anchored to tree trunks and branches by sparse wiry roots; southeastern United States and West Indies to South America
any of various chiefly Mediterranean plants of the genera Asphodeline and Asphodelus having linear leaves and racemes of white or pink or yellow flowers
bushy perennial Old World mint having small white or yellowish flowers and fragrant lemon-flavored leaves; a garden escapee in northern Europe and North America
any of numerous plants of the genus Begonia grown for their attractive glossy asymmetrical leaves and colorful flowers in usually terminal cymes or racemes
medium to large tree of tropical North and South America having odd-pinnate leaves and long panicles of small pale yellow flowers followed by scarlet fruits
perennial woodland native of North America having a red root and red sap and bearing a solitary lobed leaf and white flower in early spring and having acrid emetic properties; rootstock used as a stimulant and expectorant
one of the most handsome prairie wildflowers having large erect bell-shaped bluish flowers; of moist places in prairies and fields from eastern Colorado and Nebraska south to New Mexico and Texas
any of several South American ornamental woody vines of the genus Bougainvillea having brilliant red or purple flower bracts; widely grown in warm regions
very short-stemmed plant with thick leaves with soothing mucilaginous juice; leaves develop spiny margins with maturity; native to Mediterranean region; grown widely in tropics and as houseplants
any of numerous chiefly annual herbs of the genus Calendula widely cultivated for their yellow or orange flowers; often used for medicinal and culinary purposes
hairy aromatic perennial herb having whorls of small white purple-spotted flowers in a terminal spike; used in the past as a domestic remedy; strongly attractive to cats
frequently cultivated Eurasian evergreen shrub or small tree having showy clusters of white flowers and glossy foliage and yielding oil similar to bitter almond oil
burdock having heart-shaped leaves found in open woodland, hedgerows and rough grassland of Europe (except extreme N) and Asia Minor; sometimes cultivated for medicinal and culinary use
tufted evergreen perennial herb having spikes of tiny white flowers and glossy green round to heart-shaped leaves that become coppery to maroon or purplish in fall
tall leafy European biennial or perennial having spectacular clusters of large tubular pink-purple flowers; leaves yield drug digitalis and are poisonous to livestock
weedy trailing mat-forming herb with bright yellow flowers cultivated for its edible mildly acid leaves eaten raw or cooked especially in Indian and Greek and Middle Eastern cuisine; cosmopolitan
tall North American reed having relative wide leaves and large plumelike panicles; widely distributed in moist areas; used for mats, screens and arrow shafts
a ductile malleable reddish-brown corrosion-resistant diamagnetic metallic element; occurs in various minerals but is the only metal that occurs abundantly in large masses; used as an electrical and thermal conductor
any of various shrubs or shrubby trees of the genus Erythrina having trifoliate leaves and racemes of scarlet to coral red flowers and black seeds; cultivated as an ornamental
European annual having large trumpet-shaped reddish-purple flowers and poisonous seed; a common weed in grainfields and beside roadways; naturalized in America
any of various mostly Mexican herbs of the genus Cosmos having radiate heads of variously colored flowers and pinnate leaves; popular fall-blooming annuals
tansy-scented Eurasian perennial herb with buttonlike yellow flowers; used as potherb or salad green and sometimes for potpourri or tea or flavoring; sometimes placed in genus Chrysanthemum
any of numerous low-growing plants of the genus Crocus having slender grasslike leaves and white or yellow or purple flowers; native chiefly to the Mediterranean region but widely cultivated
Mediterranean plant widely cultivated as a houseplant for its showy dark green leaves splotched with silver and nodding white or pink to reddish flowers with reflexed petals
any of several plants of or developed from the species Dahlia pinnata having tuberous roots and showy rayed variously colored flower heads; native to the mountains of Mexico and Central America and Colombia
perennial Eurasian herb with reddish bell-shaped flowers and shining black berries; extensively grown in United States; roots and leaves yield atropine
small Eurasian shrub having clusters of yellow flowers that yield a dye; common as a weed in Britain and the United States; sometimes grown as an ornamental
any of numerous insects of the order Dermaptera having elongate bodies and slender many-jointed antennae and a pair of large pincers at the rear of the abdomen
any sluggish bottom-dwelling ray of the order Torpediniformes having a rounded body and electric organs on each side of the head capable of emitting strong electric discharges
a fungus that infects various cereal plants forming compact black masses of branching filaments that replace many grains of the plant; source of medicinally important alkaloids and of lysergic acid
Eurasian perennial herb having pale pink flowers and curved pods; naturalized in Britain and North America grasslands on calcareous soils; important forage crop and source of honey in Britain
bushy aromatic European perennial herb having clusters of buttonlike white-rayed flower heads; valued traditionally for medicinal uses; sometimes placed in genus Chrysanthemum
European weed naturalized in southwestern United States and Mexico having reddish decumbent stems with small fernlike leaves and small deep reddish-lavender flowers followed by slender fruits that stick straight up; often grown for forage
tall North American perennial with creeping rootstocks and narrow leaves and spikes of pinkish-purple flowers occurring in great abundance in burned-over areas or recent clearings; an important honey plant
any of various tropical American deciduous shrubs or trees of the genus Plumeria having milky sap and showy fragrant funnel-shaped variously colored flowers
deciduous dioecious Chinese tree having fan-shaped leaves and fleshy yellow seeds; exists almost exclusively in cultivation especially as an ornamental street tree
any of numerous plants of the genus Gladiolus native chiefly to tropical and South Africa having sword-shaped leaves and one-sided spikes of brightly colored funnel-shaped flowers; widely cultivated
deciduous or semi-evergreen tree having scented sepia to yellow flowers in drooping racemes and pods whose pulp is used medicinally; tropical Asia and Central and South America and Australia
burdock having heart-shaped leaves found in open woodland, hedgerows and rough grassland of Europe (except extreme N) and Asia Minor; sometimes cultivated for medicinal and culinary use
any of numerous cosmopolitan annual or perennial herbs of the genus Physalis bearing edible fleshy berries enclosed in a bladderlike husk; some cultivated for their flowers
trailing European aromatic plant of the mint family having rounded leaves and small purplish flowers often grown in hanging baskets; naturalized in North America; sometimes placed in genus Nepeta
eellike cyclostome having a tongue with horny teeth in a round mouth surrounded by eight tentacles; feeds on dead or trapped fishes by boring into their bodies
any of several plants of the genus Hepatica having three-lobed leaves and white or pinkish flowers in early spring; of moist and mossy subalpine woodland areas of north temperate regions
tall European annual with downy grey-green foliage and dense heads of small white flowers followed by hairy pods; naturalized in North America; sometimes a troublesome weed
ornamental evergreen shrub of Pacific coast of North America having dark green pinnate leaves and racemes of yellow flowers followed by blue-black berries
tall usually spiny North American tree having small greenish-white flowers in drooping racemes followed by long twisting seed pods; yields very hard durable reddish-brown wood; introduced to temperate Old World
large marine arthropod of the Atlantic coast of North America having a domed carapace that is shaped like a horseshoe and a stiff pointed tail; a living fossil related to the wood louse
perennial rushlike flowerless herbs with jointed hollow stems and narrow toothlike leaves that spread by creeping rhizomes; tend to become weedy; common in northern hemisphere; some in Africa and South America
a European mint with aromatic and pungent leaves used in perfumery and as a seasoning in cookery; often cultivated as a remedy for bruises; yields hyssop oil
any of various coarse shrubby plants of the genus Iva with small greenish flowers; common in moist areas (as coastal salt marshes) of eastern and central North America
rapidly growing deciduous tree of low mountainsides of China and Japan; grown as an ornamental for its dark blue-green candy-scented foliage that becomes yellow to scarlet in autumn
the superlative of `little' that can be used with mass nouns and is usually preceded by `the'; a quantifier meaning smallest in amount or extent or degree
bushy perennial Old World mint having small white or yellowish flowers and fragrant lemon-flavored leaves; a garden escapee in northern Europe and North America
widely cultivated Eurasian annual herb grown for its edible flattened seeds that are cooked like peas and also ground into meal and for its leafy stalks that are used as fodder
low-growing perennial plant having usually two large oblong lanceolate leaves and a raceme of small fragrant nodding bell-shaped flowers followed by scarlet berries
any of various deciduous trees of the genus Tilia with heart-shaped leaves and drooping cymose clusters of yellowish often fragrant flowers; several yield valuable timber
any of several plants of the genus Hepatica having three-lobed leaves and white or pinkish flowers in early spring; of moist and mossy subalpine woodland areas of north temperate regions
spiny shrub or small tree of Central America and West Indies having bipinnate leaves and racemes of small bright yellow flowers and yielding a hard brown or brownish-red heartwood used in preparing a black dye
perennial plant of Europe and America having racemes of white or purplish flowers and intensely bitter trifoliate leaves; often rooting at water margin and spreading across the surface
stout erect perennial grass of northern parts of Old World having silky flowering spikes; widely cultivated for pasture and hay; naturalized in North America
any of several small spiny trees or shrubs of the genus Prosopis having small flowers in axillary cylindrical spikes followed by large pods rich in sugar
any of various minerals consisting of hydrous silicates of aluminum or potassium etc. that crystallize in forms that allow perfect cleavage into very thin leaves; used as dielectrics because of their resistance to electricity
Mediterranean woody annual widely cultivated for its dense terminal spikelike clusters greenish or yellowish white flowers having an intense spicy fragrance
any of several Old World coarse prickly-leaved shrubs and subshrubs having milky juice and yellow flowers; widely naturalized; often noxious weeds in cultivated soil
Old World parasitic shrub having branching greenish stems with leathery leaves and waxy white glutinous berries; the traditional mistletoe of Christmas
evergreen shrub of southern European highlands having downy foliage and a succession of yellow flowers throughout the summer followed by curious snail-shaped pods
Eurasian perennial naturalized in eastern North America having very spiny white cottony foliage and nodding musky crimson flower heads; valuable source of nectar
a whitish mineral consisting of sodium aluminum silicate or potassium aluminum silicate in crystalline form; used in the manufacture of ceramics and enamels
an amphibole mineral consisting of calcium magnesium silicate in monoclinic crystalline form; a source of jade that is less valuable than from jadeite; once believed to cure kidney disorders
a hard malleable ductile silvery metallic element that is resistant to corrosion; used in alloys; occurs in pentlandite and smaltite and garnierite and millerite
a common nonmetallic element that is normally a colorless odorless tasteless inert diatomic gas; constitutes 78 percent of the atmosphere by volume; a constituent of all living tissues
large symmetrical deciduous tree with rounded crown widely distributed in eastern North America; has large leaves with triangular spiny tipped lobes and coarse-grained wood less durable than that of white oaks
an ornamental but poisonous flowering shrub having narrow evergreen leaves and clusters of fragrant white to pink or red flowers: native to East Indies but widely cultivated in warm regions
spring-flowering garden perennial of Asiatic origin having finely divided aromatic leaves and white to pink-purple flowers; source of an insecticide; sometimes placed in genus Chrysanthemum
widely cultivated American plant cultivated in tropical and warm regions; showy yellow flowers on stalks that bend over to the soil so that seed pods ripen underground
a mineral consisting of uranium oxide and trace amounts of radium and thorium and polonium and lead and helium; uraninite in massive form is called pitchblende which is the chief uranium ore
climbing plant common in eastern and central United States with ternate leaves and greenish flowers followed by white berries; yields an irritating oil that causes a rash on contact
American musteline mammal typically ejecting an intensely malodorous fluid when startled; in some classifications put in a separate subfamily Mephitinae
a light soft silver-white metallic element of the alkali metal group; oxidizes rapidly in air and reacts violently with water; is abundant in nature in combined forms occurring in sea water and in carnallite and kainite and sylvite
any of numerous marine fishes whose elongated spiny body can inflate itself with water or air to form a globe; several species contain a potent nerve poison; closely related to spiny puffers
a coarse vine widely cultivated for its large pulpy round orange fruit with firm orange skin and numerous seeds; subspecies of Cucurbita pepo include the summer squashes and a few autumn squashes
white-flowered pyrethrum of Balkan area whose pinnate leaves are white and silky-hairy below; source of an insecticide; sometimes placed in genus Chrysanthemum
a hard glossy mineral consisting of silicon dioxide in crystal form; present in most rocks (especially sandstone and granite); yellow sand is quartz with iron oxide impurities
large ornamental tropical American tree with bipinnate leaves and globose clusters of flowers with crimson stamens and seed pods that are eaten by cattle
any of various tall perennial grasses of the genus Calamagrostis having feathery plumes; natives of marshland fens and wet woodlands of temperate northern hemisphere
an erect greyish branching lichen of Arctic and even some north temperate regions constituting the chief food for reindeer and caribou and sometimes being eaten by humans
an erect greyish branching lichen of Arctic and even some north temperate regions constituting the chief food for reindeer and caribou and sometimes being eaten by humans
any shrub of the genus Rhododendron: evergreen shrubs or small shrubby trees having leathery leaves and showy clusters of campanulate (bell-shaped) flowers
commonly cultivated larkspur of southern Europe having unbranched spikelike racemes of blue or sometimes purplish or pinkish flowers; sometime placed in genus Delphinium
Asiatic shrub or small shrubby tree having showy bell-shaped rose or purple or white flowers and usually three-lobed leaves; widely cultivated in temperate North America and Europe
hardy annual cereal grass widely cultivated in northern Europe where its grain is the chief ingredient of black bread and in North America for forage and soil improvement
Eurasian perennial herb having pale pink flowers and curved pods; naturalized in Britain and North America grasslands on calcareous soils; important forage crop and source of honey in Britain
a plant of the genus Sanicula having palmately compound leaves and unisexual flowers in panicled umbels followed by bristly fruit; reputed to have healing powers
the commercially bred hairless white caterpillar of the domestic silkworm moth which spins a cocoon that can be processed to yield silk fiber; the principal source of commercial silk
a soft white precious univalent metallic element having the highest electrical and thermal conductivity of any metal; occurs in argentite and in free form; used in coins and jewelry and tableware and photography
alert agile lizard with reduced limbs and an elongated body covered with shiny scales; more dependent on moisture than most lizards; found in tropical regions worldwide
American musteline mammal typically ejecting an intensely malodorous fluid when startled; in some classifications put in a separate subfamily Mephitinae
deciduous perennial low-growing fetid swamp plant of eastern North America having minute flowers enclosed in a mottled greenish or purple cowl-shaped spathe
perennial tropical American vine cultivated for its racemes of showy yellow and purple flowers having the corolla keel coiled like a snail shell; sometimes placed in genus Phaseolus
showy perennial of marshlands of eastern and central North America having waxy lanceolate leaves and flower with lower part creamy white and upper parts pale pink to deep purple
a plant of the genus Sanicula having palmately compound leaves and unisexual flowers in panicled umbels followed by bristly fruit; reputed to have healing powers
large round-topped deciduous tree with spreading branches having narrow falcate leaves with deeply sinuate lobes and wood similar to that of northern red oaks; New Jersey to Illinois and southward
common water lily of eastern and central North America, having broad leaves and globe-shaped yellow flowers; in sluggish fresh or slightly brackish water
predatory arachnid with eight legs, two poison fangs, two feelers, and usually two silk-spinning organs at the back end of the body; they spin silk to make cocoons for eggs or traps for prey
a small usually single-celled asexual reproductive body produced by many nonflowering plants and fungi and some bacteria and protozoans and that are capable of developing into a new individual without sexual fusion
a spore-bearing branch or organ: the part of the thallus of a sporophyte that develops spores; in ferns and mosses and liverworts is practically equivalent to the sporophyte
evergreen tree of West Indies and Central America having edible purple fruit star-shaped in cross section and dark green leaves with golden silky undersides
any of various plants of the genus Stapelia having succulent leafless toothed stems resembling cacti and large foul-smelling (often star-shaped) flowers
stemless perennial having large flowers with white or purple-brown florets nestled in a rosette of long spiny leaves hairy beneath; of alpine regions of southern and eastern Europe
small (2-4 inches) pugnacious mostly scaleless spiny-backed fishes of northern fresh and littoral waters having elaborate courtship; subjects of much research
any of various low perennial herbs with many runners and bearing white flowers followed by edible fruits having many small achenes scattered on the surface of an enlarged red pulpy berry
a colorless toxic gas (SO2) that occurs in the gases from volcanoes; used in many manufacturing processes and present in industrial emissions; causes acid rain
small carnivorous freshwater percoid fishes of North America usually having a laterally compressed body and metallic luster: crappies; black bass; bluegills; pumpkinseed
small bushy deciduous tree native to Asia and North Africa having pretty pink blossoms and highly prized edible nuts enclosed in a hard green hull; cultivated in southern Australia and California
Old World fragrant stoloniferous perennial having small white flowers and narrow leaves used as flavoring and in sachets; widely cultivated as a ground cover; in some classifications placed in genus Asperula
large toothless marine food fish with a long swordlike upper jaw; not completely cold-blooded i.e. they are able to warm their brains and eyes: worldwide in warm waters but feed on cold ocean floor coming to surface at night
long-lived tropical evergreen tree with a spreading crown and feathery evergreen foliage and fragrant flowers yielding hard yellowish wood and long pods with edible chocolate-colored acidic pulp
any shrub or small tree of the genus Tamarix having small scalelike or needle-shaped leaves and feathery racemes of small white or pinkish flowers; of mostly coastal areas with saline soil
glabrous or pubescent evergreen shrub or tree of the genus Salvadora; twigs are fibrous and in some parts of the world are bound together in clusters and used as a toothbrush; shoots are used as camel fodder; plant ash provides salt
prostrate or semi-erect subshrub of tropical America, and Australia; heavily armed with recurved thorns and having sensitive soft grey-green leaflets that fold and droop at night or when touched or cooled
a mineral that is a complex borosilicate and hydroxide of aluminum containing iron and magnesium and calcium and lithium and sodium; it is usually black but occurs in transparent colored forms that are used as gemstones
any of various small insectivorous birds of the northern hemisphere that climb up a tree trunk supporting themselves on stiff tail feathers and their feet
deciduous rapidly growing tree of China with foliage like sumac and sweetish fetid flowers; widely planted in United States as a street tree because of its resistance to pollution
a heavy colorless highly toxic liquid used as a solvent to clean electronic components and for dry cleaning and as a fumigant; causes cancer and liver and lung damage
tall North American deciduous timber tree having large tulip-shaped greenish yellow flowers and conelike fruit; yields soft white woods used especially for cabinet work
small slow-growing deciduous shrubby tree of dry sandy barrens of southeastern United States having leaves with bristle-tipped lobes resembling turkey's toes
showy perennial of marshlands of eastern and central North America having waxy lanceolate leaves and flower with lower part creamy white and upper parts pale pink to deep purple
rhizomatous perennial herb with large dramatic peltate leaves and white to bright pink flowers in round heads on leafless stems; colonizes stream banks in the Sierra Nevada in California
any of various herbaceous plants cultivated for an edible part such as the fruit or the root of the beet or the leaf of spinach or the seeds of bean plants or the flower buds of broccoli or cauliflower
any of various climbing plants of the genus Vicia having pinnately compound leaves that terminate in tendrils and small variously colored flowers; includes valuable forage and soil-building plants
minute free-swimming freshwater copepod having a large median eye and pear-shaped body and long antennae used in swimming; important in some food chains and as intermediate hosts of parasitic worms that affect man e.g. Guinea worms
common thorny tropical American tree having terminal racemes of yellow flowers followed by sickle-shaped or circinate edible pods and yielding good timber and a yellow dye and mucilaginous gum
any of numerous relatively small elongated soft-bodied animals especially of the phyla Annelida and Chaetognatha and Nematoda and Nemertea and Platyhelminthes; also many insect larvae
ubiquitous strong-scented mat-forming Eurasian herb of wasteland, hedgerow or pasture having narrow serrate leaves and small usually white florets; widely naturalized in North America
biennial yellow-flowered Eurasian plant having aromatic leaves used as carminative or flavoring agent; widely cultivated especially as green manure or cover crop
any of several evergreen plants of the genus Yucca having usually tall stout stems and a terminal cluster of white flowers; warmer regions of North America
any of a family of glassy minerals analogous to feldspar containing hydrated aluminum silicates of calcium or sodium or potassium; formed in cavities in lava flows and in plutonic rocks