lesser celandine

noun

1. a Eurasian plant, Ranunculus ficaria, of the buttercup family, having heart-shaped leaves and glossy yellow flowers, naturalized in North America.

lesser celandine

noun

1. a Eurasian ranunculaceous plant, Ranunculus ficaria, having yellow flowers and heart-shaped leaves Also calledpilewort Compare greater celandine

Word History and Origins

Origin of lesser celandine¹

First recorded in 1885–90

Example Sentences

Instead, we see a plague of English ivy, winter creeper, vinca, honeysuckle vine, lesser celandine and multiflora rose.

From Washington Post

The ode is one of three the poet wrote to his favorite flower — commonly known as the lesser celandine or fig buttercup and recognizable for its glossy, egg-yolk-yellow blooms — which is also a persistent weed.

From New York Times

Dana Dierkes, the park’s chief of interpretation, education and outreach, tells me that concerted efforts to clear the park’s northern flood plain of lesser celandine have succeeded in returning native flora there.

From Washington Post

I see lesser celandine choking the wildflowers, and winged euonymus and Japanese honeysuckle crowding out native spicebush.

From Washington Post

A native violet tries to peek out amid an overwhelming cover of lesser celandine, an invasive plant commonly called fig buttercup.

From National Geographic