henbit
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: 1.10 in modern English
11
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
6
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
An annual herb, of species Lamium amplexicaule, with pink or purple flowers and deeply crenate leaves.
noun
Other species of plant that resemble L. amplexicaule, especially related species of deadnettle in the genus Lamium.
Example Sentences
- "The fourth kind (called of the base Almaignes Hoenderbeet) that is to say, Henbit, hath many round and hairie stems. The leaves be somewhat round, hairie, and a little snipt or jagged about the edges, otherwise not much unlike the leaves of great Chickweede. The floures be blew or purple, and do bring foorth^([sic]) small close knappes or huskes, in which is inclosed the seede."
- "Henbit typically sprouts in fall, after the soil has been cultivated following the removal of summer plants. It grows well in partial shade or full sun and is considered an indicator of rich, moisture-holding soil."
Etymology
Calque of Dutch hoenderbeet. By surface analysis, hen + bit (past participle of bite; bitten). First attested in 1578. Cognate with Middle Low German hennebit and German Hühnerbiss; all likely derived from Medieval Latin Morsus gallinae, the ancestor of Italian mordigallina, French morgeline and obsolete English margeline. See also chickweed.
Origin
Word Breakdown
Inflected Forms
Phrases
common henbit
garden henbit
greater henbit
red henbit
small henbit
spotted henbit
white henbit
yellow henbit