Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
Rhapis excelsa

Rhapis excelsa

8.6
A small decorative palm often grown indoors or outdoors for its thin stems and green leaves
  • noun
  • Specialized
translation icon : Rhapis excelsa
  • Because it thrives in low light, Rhapis excelsa is a popular choice for indoor gardening.

Examples

  • The Rhapis excelsa is often used as a decorative plant in offices and homes.

  • Botanists admire the slender stems and lush green leaves of Rhapis excelsa.

  • The Rhapis excelsa is a popular indoor plant.

  • Many people love the Rhapis excelsa for its elegance.

  • Because it thrives in low light, Rhapis excelsa is a popular choice for indoor gardening.

  • Botanists admire the slender stems and lush green leaves of Rhapis excelsa.

  • The Rhapis excelsa is often used as a decorative plant in offices and homes.

Synonyms

fern rhapis
vsRhapis excelsa
9.9

A small decorative palm with thin stems and coarse fibers at the leaf bases

is less specific about the leaf base fiber texture
miniature fan palm
vsRhapis excelsa
  • Specialized
8.4

A small tropical plant with fan-shaped leaves, thin stems, and loose fibers at the leaf bases

adds that it is commonly grown as an ornamental plant indoors and outdoors
lady palm
vsRhapis excelsa
  • Specialized
6.6

A small indoor plant with many thin, fan-shaped leaves

is grown both indoors and outdoors rather than mainly as a houseplant

Surface Forms

Rhapis excelsa singular
Rhapis excelsas plural

Morphology

Rhapis + excelsa

This is a Latin binomial (taxonomic) name rather than an ordinary English phrase: knowing 'Rhapis' may hint that it is a palm genus, but 'excelsa' is not an English lexical item here (and is presented as '[Word not found in dictionary]'). The name functions as a label for a species rather than a compositional combination whose meaning a B1 learner could derive from the parts, so it is not predictable from the constituents.

Etymology

Rhapis excelsa may come from old Greek and Latin words: Rhapis possibly from a Greek word meaning 'needle' or 'rod' for its thin, reedlike stems, and excelsa from Latin meaning 'tall'. So the name paints a simple picture — a 'tall' thin palm — which fits the plant's slim stems and upright growth.