Marantaceae

9.9

Tropical plants with starchy underground stems that people grow for pretty leaves or edible roots

noun
/məˈræn.təˌsiː/

Specialized

: Marantáceas

The Marantaceae family includes well-known plants like arrowroot and prayer plants.

Examples

Arrowroot, a starch derived from Marantaceae plants, is commonly used as a thickening agent in cooking.
Sitting near the riverbank on an improvised mat of large Marantaceae leaves, Aluta cuts tobacco into shreds and tamps it into a tar-blackened clay pipe.

Academic text (1991)
Many gardeners appreciate the beauty of Marantaceae, which often features striking leaf patterns.

Synonyms

family Marantaceae

vsMarantaceae

Specialized

9.5

Tropical plants with thick underground stems often grown as houseplants

is identical in meaning but uses the standard family name form

arrowroot family

vsMarantaceae

7.0

Tropical plants with thick, starchy roots often used for food

is the formal scientific family name rather than the common food name

Surface Forms

Marantaceae singular

Marantaceas singular

Etymology

Marantaceae comes from the name of the Italian botanist Maranta plus the plant-family ending -aceae, which means 'family' and is used for groups of plants such as Rosaceae, the rose family. So Marantaceae is the 'Maranta family' and refers to the group of plants that includes arrowroot and the prayer plant.