meadowsweet
meadowsweet Lexical Profile
meadowsweet Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A tall Eurasian herbaceous perennial plant of the rose family (Filipendula ulmaria), growing in damp meadows and bearing dense, feathery clusters of fragrant, creamy-white blossoms.
"The damp riverbanks were covered in frothy white plumes of blooming meadowsweet."
North American Any of several North American deciduous shrubs of the genus Spiraea (especially Spiraea alba or Spiraea latifolia), characterized by upright panicles of small white or pale pink flowers.
"Native meadowsweet shrubs attract numerous pollinators to wet pastures throughout late summer."
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Originally formed in Middle English as 'medeswete', meaning 'mead-sweetener' because the fragrant plant was historically used to flavor honey mead; the first element was later altered by folk etymology to 'meadow' due to its damp grassland habitat.
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.