pitcher plantn.
/ˈpɪtʃə plɑːnt/, /ˈpɪtʃə plant/, U.S. /ˈpɪtʃər ˌplænt/ Any of various carnivorous plants bearing deep, often lidded, pitcher-like modified leaves or tendrils, often with a liquid secretion at the bottom, in which insects are trapped for digestion; spec. (a) any plant of the North American genus Sarracenia (family Sarraceniaceae); (b) any plant of the chiefly southeast Asian genus Nepenthes (family Nepenthaceae); (c) Cephalotus follicularis (family Cephalotaceae) of south-western Australia; (d) any of various other plants of the family Sarraceniaceae, esp. Darlingtonia californica of the north-western United States and plants of the Guyanese genus Heliamphora.
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the world > plants > particular plants > plants and herbs > insectivorous plants > [noun] > pitcher-plants
distillatory plant1707
side-saddle flower1718
nepenthes1754
Sarracenia1786
monkey-cup1810
pitcher plant1810
Indian cup1823
nepenth1846
water pitcher1847
huntsman's cup1848
side-saddle plant1861
trumpet-leaf1861
trumpet1884
the world > plants > particular plants > plants and herbs > insectivorous plants > [adjective]
pitcher plant1947
1810 R. Steele Tour Atlantic 99 The most frequent and beautiful wild roses have been observed here; as, likewise, a remarkable production called the pitcher-plant.
1818 A. Cunningham in I. Marriott Early Explorers Austral. (1925) 31 Jan. 323 I made a diligent search for the curious Pitcher Plant, Cephalotus follicularis.
1835 J. S. Henslow Princ. Bot. i. §80 In the Nepenthes, or true pitcher-plant, the pitcher is placed at the extremity of a tendril, terminating a winged petiole. It is crowned with a membranous lid.
1883 G. Allen in Longman's Mag. July 311 The pitcher plants allure flies into their murderous vessels.
1929 W. J. Robbins & H. W. Rickett Botany xxiii. 356 Some of the most striking leaf modifications are in the plants known as pitcher plants.
1947 I. L. Idriess Isles of Despair xxxiii. 220 She could not sleep.., thinking of the phantom pygmies in the pitcher-plant swamps.
1965 D. Henderson Heart of Newfoundland 19 We had seen pitcher plants before..but never in such numbers as are found in Newfoundland.
1992 New Brunswick Trav. Guide 91/1 Go for a bouncy walk and discover pitcher plants, sundew and tasty wild cranberry.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2006; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1810