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water lily
noun
: any of various aquatic plants (especially genera Nymphaea and Nuphar of the family Nymphaeaceae, the water-lily family) with floating leaves and usually showy flowers
broadly
: an aquatic plant (such as a water hyacinth) with showy flowers
Examples of water lily in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Flowing gently through the channels’ water lilies provides ample time for conversation with Indigenous groups.
—
Alexandra Owens, AFAR Media, 10 Feb. 2025
These true lilies, not to be confused with daylilies (Hemerocallis), calla lilies (Zantedeschia), or water lilies (Nymphaea), will come back year after year if the bulbs are cared for correctly.
—
Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 23 Jan. 2025
Remnants of water chestnuts and the ground roots of water lilies also indicate that the hominids didn’t limit their gleaning to land.
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Paul Smaglik, Discover Magazine, 8 Jan. 2025
Scientists examined tools used to prepare food hundreds of thousands of years ago and found substances indicating that ancient humans ate not only meat, including rodents and water fowl, but also a range of plants such as grasses, nuts, wheat, oats, rye, barley, water chestnuts, and water lilies.
—
Tom Gavin, EverydayHealth.com, 13 Jan. 2025
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Word History
First Known Use
15th century, in the meaning defined above
Time Traveler
The first known use of water lily was
in the 15th century
Dictionary Entries Near water lily
Cite this Entry
“Water lily.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/water%20lily. Accessed 16 Feb. 2025.
Kids Definition
water lily
noun
: any of a family of water plants with rounded floating leaves and usually showy flowers
More from Merriam-Webster on water lily
Nglish: Translation of water lily for Spanish Speakers
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about water lily
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