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Definition of star thistle
star thistle
Plural:star thistles
• noun
1
Any of several herbaceous Eurasian plants of the genus Centaurea (family Asteraceae), notable for bearing yellow or purple composite flower heads surrounded by stiff, radiating, star-like spiny bracts, several species of which are invasive weeds in North America.
Example
"The dry hillside was overgrown with yellow star thistle, whose sharp floral spines made walking through the pasture difficult."
Synonyms
View all synonyms for star thistle• Nearby Words
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.
180019102020
Data source: Google Books Ngram Viewer
Cite this Entry
Wordmom. (2026). Definition of Star thistle. In Wordmom Dictionary. Retrieved Oct 17, 2026, from https://wordmom.com/dictionary/star%20thistle