columnea

noun

tropical plant having thick hairy somewhat toothed leaves and solitary or clustered yellow to scarlet flowers; many cultivated for their flowers and ornamental foliage

• Hypernyms: ↑shrub, ↑bush

• Member Holonyms: ↑genus Columnea

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\\kəˈləmnēə\ noun

Etymology: New Latin, after Fabio Colonna (Latinized as Columna) died ab 1640 Italian scholar

1. capitalized : a genus of tropical American evergreen herbs or subshrubs (family Gesneriaceae) that are often creeping or climbing, have thick opposite hairy leaves frequently unequal and somewhat toothed, produce axillary solitary or clustered yellow to scarlet flowers, and include several forms cultivated for their flowers and ornamental foliage

2. -s : any plant of the genus Columnea

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/keuh lum"nee euh/, n.

any of various vines or shrubs of the genus Columnea, native to tropical America, that have tubular, showy, two-lipped flowers and are often cultivated as houseplants.

[ < NL (Linnaeus), equiv. to column(a), Latinized form of Fabio Colonna (1567-ca. 1640), Italian writer on plants + -ea -EA]