Thursday, January 06, 2011

What does the word "Orchidaceous" mean?

Or-chi-da-ceous  adjective: \ˌr-kə-ˈdā-shəs\ means of, relating to or resembling the orchids.  Now that is a cool definition, don't you think? Orchidaceous also means showy or ostentatious.  So the word orchidaceous (wait, I can't spell check orchidaceous, hmm) means relating to or resembling orchids.  Orchids are air plants, they use the air you and I breathe to live.  That means an orchidaceous plant can be a fern (also an air plant) and bromeliads (the pineapple is a bromeliad) which are also air plants.  I wonder who made up this word, because I like it a lot? Don't you?

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