Celosia argentea

9.9

A plant that lives one year and has tall silvery flower spikes often seen as a weed

noun

Specialized

: celosia argentea

In late summer, the Celosia argentea filled the garden with brilliant, silvery spires.

Examples

Some farmers regard Celosia argentea as a weed because it grows abundantly in disturbed soils.
The florist arranged Celosia argentea alongside other exotic flowers for a striking bouquet.
The garden was filled with Celosia argentea in full bloom.
Many gardeners love Celosia argentea for its unique flowers.
In late summer, the Celosia argentea filled the garden with brilliant, silvery spires.
Some farmers regard Celosia argentea as a weed because it grows abundantly in disturbed soils.
The florist arranged Celosia argentea alongside other exotic flowers for a striking bouquet.

Surface Forms

Celosia argentea singular

Celosia argenteas plural

Morphology

Celosia + argenteum

The binomial combines the genus name Celosia (a plume-like ornamental plant) with an adjective derived from Latin argentea/argenteum meaning 'silver', so the meaning 'silver (or silver‑white) Celosia' is directly derivable. This color‑epithet + species pattern is compositional and cross‑linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents can infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

Celosia argentea may come from old words that describe how the plant looks. The part Celosia may come from a Greek word meaning 'burn' because the flowers can look like bright little flames, and argentea comes from a Latin word for 'silver' for the plant's silvery-white spikes, so the name helps you picture a tall, silver, flame-like plant.