telegraph plant


noun

a tick trefoil, Desmodium motorium, of the legume family, native to tropical Asia, noted for the spontaneous, jerking, signallike motions of its leaflets.

Origin of telegraph plant

First recorded in 1880–85

Words nearby telegraph plant

Example sentences from the Web for telegraph plant

  • Portion of stem and leaves of Telegraph-plant (Desmodium gyrans), almost of natural size.

British Dictionary definitions for telegraph plant

telegraph plant

noun

a small tropical Asian leguminous shrub, Desmodium gyrans, having small leaflets that turn in various directions during the day and droop at night