orchidaceousadj.
/ˌɔːkᵻˈdeɪʃəs/, U.S. /ˌɔrkəˈdeɪʃəs/ 1. Botany. Of, relating to, or characteristic of the family Orchidaceae, comprising the orchids.In quot. 1927: used for the cultivation of orchids.
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the world > plants > particular plants > plants and herbs > according to family > Orchidaceae family or members > [adjective]
orchideous1818
orchidean1821
orchidaceous1838
orchideal1849
1838 J. Lindley in F. A. Bauer Illustr. Orchidaceous Plants Pref. p. x The general structure of an Orchidaceous flower.
1849 J. H. Balfour Man. Bot. § 379 Among the irregular polypetalous corollas might be included the orchidaceous.
1882 Garden 20 May 348/3 Cattleya gigas..is now within the reach of all who grow Orchidaceous plants.
1927 Travel Nov. 25/1 From the orchidaceous hothouses up to the stunted pasture lands we pass foaming cascades, mortal leaves, great arborescent ferns of the early geologic ages.
1960 R. E. Schultes Native Orchids Trinidad & Tobago 2 One of the most renowned of the orchidaceous ‘medicinals’ was salep.
1994 Ann. Missouri Bot. Garden 81 708/2 It is the ancestral orchidaceous condition.
2. Resembling an orchid, esp. in being exotic, extravagant, or florid.
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the mind > attention and judgement > bad taste > flashiness or gaudiness > [adjective]
fine1526
garish1545
flaunting1567
gawish1567
taffety1597
showful1607
flaming1609
flaring1610
over-brave1620
showish1675
rantingc1685
gaudy1709
showy1712
tinselled1738
kicky1790
flaunty1796
flashy1801
slangish1813
florid1815
tigerish1831
flash1836
flary1841
loud1850
flashy-looking1852
splurgy1852
cheesy1858
flagrant1858
jingo1859
cheesy1863
orchidaceous1864
flamboyant1879
vociferous1883
voyant1906
grandstanding1908
floozy1911
ritzy1919
like a (or the) dog's dinner1927
plush horse1936
kitsch1953
zazzy1961
pizzazz1969
1864 C. M. Yonge Trial I. 84 I have read of a woman with an orchidaceous face.
1894 R. Le Gallienne Prose Fancies 34 The simple old type of manhood is lost long since in endless orchidaceous variation.
1897 G. B. Shaw in Sat. Rev. 13 Feb. 170 Engaged to be orchidaceous and flamboyant as the Improper Person of Babylon.
1908 E. Terry Story of my Life 218 It is a ‘picture’ of love that she [sc. Sarah Bernhardt] gives, a strange orchidaceous picture rather than a suggestion of the ordinary human passion as felt by ordinary human people.
1962 V. Nabokov Pale Fire (1963) 43 Saw that blue hair, those freckled hands, that rapt Orchidaceous air—and knew that I was trapped.
1995 Daily Tel. 3 Mar. 18/3 Richard E. Grant's kiss-curled designer is a suitably over-the-top study in orchidaceous high camp.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2004; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.1838