orchid

English

Phalaenopsis cultivar

Orchis lactea with root visible and a one-Euro coin for scale.

Etymology

From New Latin Orchideae, Orchidaceae, an irregular formation from Latin orchis, from Ancient Greek ὄρχις (órkhis, “orchid, testicle”) (ostensibly from the shape of the roots). Supplanted Middle English ballokwort (literally “testicle plant”).

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈɔː.kɪd/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈɔɹ.kɪd/
• Rhymes: -ɔː(ɹ)kɪd

Noun

orchid (plural orchids)

1. A plant of the orchid family (Orchidaceae), bearing unusually-shaped flowers of beautiful colours. [mid-19th c.]
2. A light bluish-red, violet-red or purple colour.

   orchid:  

Synonyms

• orchidea

Derived terms

• ant orchid
• bog orchid
• Brazilian orchid tree
• bucket orchid
• common spotted orchid
• cup orchid
• donkey orchid
• early spider orchid
• frog orchid
• ghost orchid
• hairy spider orchid
• heath spotted orchid
• Hooker's bog orchid
• Hooker's orchid
• ironcaps spider orchid
• man orchid
• moth orchid
• pansy orchid
• phantom orchid
• poor man's orchid
• slipper-orchid
• slipper orchid
• snow orchid
• spotted orchid
• swamp orchid
• yellowspike orchid

 

Translations

plant

• Afrikaans: orgidee (af) f
• Albanian: orkide (sq)
• Arabic: أُورْكِيد m (ʔūrkīd), سَحْلَب m (saḥlab)
• Armenian: խոլորձ (hy) (xolorj)
• Bulgarian: орхидея (bg) f (orhideja)
• Burmese: သစ်ခွ (my) (sachkwa.)
• Catalan: orquídia (ca) f
• Chinese:

  Hokkien: 蘭花／兰花 (zh-min-nan) (lân-hue)

  Mandarin: 蘭花／兰花 (zh) (lánhuā)

• Czech: orchidea f, orchidej (cs) f
• Danish: gøgeurt c
• Dutch: orchidee (nl) f
• Finnish: kämmekkä (fi), orkidea (fi)
• French: orchidée (fr) f
• Galician: orquídea (gl) f
• German: Orchidee (de) f, Knabenkraut n
• Greek: ορχιδέα (el) f (orchidéa)
• Hebrew: סחלב (he) (sakhlav)
• Hindi: ऑर्किड (ŏrkiḍ)
• Hungarian: orchidea (hu)
• Hunsrik: Paresitt f
• Icelandic: brönugras (is) n
• Indonesian: anggrek (id), bunga anggrek
• Irish: magairlín m, lus na magairlí m
• Italian: orchide (it) f, orchidea (it) f
• Japanese: 蘭 (ja) (らん, ran), 蘭の花 (らんのはな, ran no hana)
• Korean: 난초(蘭草) (ko) (nancho)
• Lao: ດອກກ້ວຍໄມ້ (dǭk kuāi mai)
• Latin: orchis f
• Lisu: ꓚꓬꓸ ꓡꓳꓻ (tʃɑ́ lo)
• Lithuanian: orchidėja f
• Macedonian: орхиде́ја f (orhidéja)
• Malay: anggerik (ms), orkid (ms)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: orkidé (no) m, orkide m

  Nynorsk: orkidé m, orkide m

• Polish: orchidea (pl) f, storczyk (pl) m inan
• Portuguese: orquídea (pt) f
• Romanian: orhidee (ro) f
• Russian: орхиде́я (ru) f (orxidéja)
• Serbo-Croatian: orhideja f, kaćun m
• Sicilian: urchidea f
• Slovak: orchidea f
• Slovene: orhideja (sl) f
• Spanish: orquídea (es) f
• Swedish: orkidé (sv) c
• Tagalog: dapo, orkid, orkidya, orkidyas
• Thai: กล้วยไม้ (th) (glûai-máai)
• Translingual: Orchidaceae
• Turkish: orkide (tr)
• Vietnamese: phong lan (vi), lan (vi)
• Volapük: lorkid, rogid
• Welsh: tegeirian m

colour

Adjective

orchid (not comparable)

1. Having a light purple colour.

Translations

colour

• Dutch: lichtpaars (nl)
• Spanish: orquídea (es)

Related terms

• orchis

Derived terms

Derived terms

• bee orchid
• boat orchid (Cymbidium spp.)
• butterfly orchid (Platanthera spp. et al.)
• fly orchid (Ophrys insectifera)
• fragrant orchid (Gymnadenia conopsea)
• fringed orchid (Platanthera spp. et al.)
• hyacinth orchids (Dipodium spp.)
• monkey orchid
• musk orchid (Herminium monorchis)
• odontoglossum (Odontoglossum)
• orchid bee (tribe Euglossini)
• orchid tree
• orchidaceous
• orchidectomy
• orchidopexy
• orchis (Orchis spp.)
• polyorchidism
• scented orchid
• vanda orchid (Vanda spp.)

See also

Other entries

• Cattleya
• clinandrium
• coralroot (Corallorhiza spp.)
• fringed orchis (Platanthera spp. et al.)
• gold bee
• helleborine
• labellum
• ladies' tresses (Spiranthes spp. and Goodyera spp.)
• lady's slipper (subfamily Cypripedioideae)
• orchis
• puttyroot (Aplectrum hyemale)
• rattlesnake plantain (Goodyera spp.)
• resupinate
• salep
• swamp pink (Helonias bullata)
• twayblade
• Appendix:Colors

Anagrams

• rhodic