Cattleya
//ˈkatlɪə// noun
noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Any plant of the genus Cattleya, a genus of orchids.
"The vegetation had again changed, and only the vegetable ivory tree remained, with a great profusion of wonderful orchids, among which I learned to recognize the rare Nuttonia Vexillaria and the glorious pink and scarlet blossoms of Cattleya and odontoglossum."
- 2 any orchid of the genus Cattleya characterized by a three-lobed lip enclosing the column; among the most popular and most extravagantly beautiful orchids known wordnet
Example
More examples"The vegetation had again changed, and only the vegetable ivory tree remained, with a great profusion of wonderful orchids, among which I learned to recognize the rare Nuttonia Vexillaria and the glorious pink and scarlet blossoms of Cattleya and odontoglossum."
Etymology
Borrowed from translingual Cattleya, named after William Cattley, English botanist.
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More for "cattleya"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.