nasturtium

[ na-stur-shuh m, nuh- ]
/ næˈstɜr ʃəm, nə- /

noun

any plant of the genus Tropaeolum, cultivated for its showy, usually orange, red, or yellow flowers or for its fruit, which is pickled and used like capers.

Origin of nasturtium

First recorded in 1560–70, nasturtium is from the Latin word nāsturtium, nāsturcium a kind of cress, taken to mean, perhaps by folk etymology, something that wrings the nose (referring to its acrid smell). See nose, tort, -ium

Words nearby nasturtium

nasser, gamal abdel, nast, nastase, nastic, nastic movement, nasturtium, nasty, nasus, nasute, nat, nat.

Example sentences from the Web for nasturtium

British Dictionary definitions for nasturtium

nasturtium
/ (nəˈstɜːʃəm) /

noun

any of various plants of the genus Tropaeolum, esp T. major, having round leaves and yellow, red, or orange trumpet-shaped spurred flowers: family Tropaeolaceae

Word Origin for nasturtium

C17: from Latin: kind of cress, from nāsus nose + tortus twisted, from torquēre to twist, distort; so called because the pungent smell causes one to wrinkle one's nose