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loosestrife
loosestrife common name for the Lythraceae, a widely distributed family of plants most abundant as woody shrubs in the American tropics but including also herbaceous species (chiefly of temperate zones) and some trees. Several shrubs of this family have been introduced in the United States as ornamentals and are now naturalized, e.g., the crape (or crepe) myrtle of China ( Lagerstroemia indica ) and the henna shrub, or mignonette tree ( Lawsonia inermis ). The latter, cultivated especially in Muslim countries, is the source of henna dye (from the leaves), oil and pomade scents (from the flowers), and a medicament (from the bark). The wild marsh plants called loosestrifes (genus Lythrum ) include several native American species with pink or lavender flowers, but the tall, showy species that blankets moist meadows and swamps with magenta to purple flowers in late summer and autumn is the spiked loosestrife ( L. salicaria ), introduced from Europe and now so widespread as to be a weed. Several species of the unrelated family Primulaceae (primrose family) are also called loosestrife. True loosestrife is classified in the division Magnoliophyta , class Magnoliopsida, order Myrtales. |
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"loosestrife." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "loosestrife." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-loosestr.html "loosestrife." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-loosestr.html |
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loosestrife
loose·strife / ˈloō(s)ˌstrīf/ • n. any of various tall plants that bear upright spikes of flowers, in particular purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria, family Lythraceae) and the yellow-flowered garden loosestrife (Lysimachia vulgaris) of the primrose family. |
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Cite this article
"loosestrife." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "loosestrife." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-loosestrife.html "loosestrife." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-loosestrife.html |
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loosestrife
loosestrife XVI. tr. L. lysimachia (- Gr. lusimákheion), erron. taken to be directly f. Gr. lusi-, comb. form of luein LOOSE + mákhē strife, whereas it is f. Lusimakhos, the name of its discoverer, an application of the adj. lusímakhos loosing (i.e. ending) strife.
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Cite this article
T. F. HOAD. "loosestrife." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "loosestrife." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-loosestrife.html T. F. HOAD. "loosestrife." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-loosestrife.html |
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