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Definition of butter and eggs
butter and eggs
Plural:butter and eggs
butter and eggs Lexical Profile
CEFR
C1
Grade
8
Tier
3
Usage
Rare
• noun
1
A common perennial wild plant (Linaria vulgaris) of the plantain family, native to Europe and widely naturalized in North America, characterized by narrow leaves and racemes of pale yellow flowers with orange centers that resemble miniature snapdragons.
Example
"The children spent the afternoon walking through the meadow, gathering a small bouquet of butter and eggs."
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Coined in the 19th century as a colloquial American and British name for the yellow toadflax (Linaria vulgaris). The name is inspired by the distinct pale yellow and deep orange colors of its petals, which closely resemble butter and egg yolks.
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.
180019102020
Data source: Google Books Ngram Viewer
Cite this Entry
Wordmom. (2026). Definition of Butter and eggs. In Wordmom Dictionary. Retrieved Oct 14, 2026, from https://wordmom.com/dictionary/butter and eggs