ORCHID FAMILY

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 Dictionary entry overview: What does orchid family mean? 

• ORCHID FAMILY (noun)
  The noun ORCHID FAMILY has 1 sense:

1. enormous cosmopolitan family of perennial terrestrial or epiphytic plants with fleshy tubers or rootstocks and unusual flowers

  Familiarity information: ORCHID FAMILY used as a noun is very rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• ORCHID FAMILY (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Enormous cosmopolitan family of perennial terrestrial or epiphytic plants with fleshy tubers or rootstocks and unusual flowers

Classified under:

Nouns denoting plants

Synonyms:

family Orchidaceae; orchid family; Orchidaceae

Hypernyms ("orchid family" is a kind of...):

liliopsid family; monocot family (family of flowering plants having a single cotyledon (embryonic leaf) in the seed)

Meronyms (members of "orchid family"):

genus Pholidota; Pholidota (genus of mostly epiphytic orchids of Indonesia and the western Pacific)

genus Phragmipedium; Phragmipedium (genus of tropical American orchid species often included in genus Cypripedium or Paphiopedilum and Selenipedium: lady slippers)

genus Phalaenopsis; Phalaenopsis (genus of ornamental epiphytic orchids of Asia and Australia)

genus Phaius (genus of Asiatic and Australian terrestrial orchids)

genus Paphiopedilum; Paphiopedilum (horticulturally important genus of mainly terrestrial orchids including many hybrids; southeastern Asia and Indonesia to Philippines and Solomon Islands; Paphiopedilum species sometimes included in genus Cypripedium)

genus Ophrys; Ophrys (a hardy genus of terrestrial orchids of Europe and northern Africa and western Asia)

genus Oncidium (large genus of showy epiphytic or lithophytic or terrestrial orchids of tropical and subtropical America)

genus Odontoglossum (large and important genus of tropical American mostly epiphytic orchids; some of the most widely grown species are often placed in other genera)

genus Miltonia; Miltonia (genus of tropical American orchids)

genus Maxillaria (large genus of tropical American epiphytic orchids with persistent leathery leaves and single-flowered scapes)

genus Masdevallia (large genus of tropical American mostly epiphytic orchids whose flowers have sepals fused at the base forming a tube; includes orchids sometimes placed in genera Dracula and Dryadella and Scaphosepalum)

genus Malaxis; Malaxis (large genus of largely terrestrial orchids with one or a few plicate leaves and slender spikes or tiny mostly green flowers; cosmopolitan)

genus Listera; Listera (genus of terrestrial orchids having usually a single pair of broad shining leaves near the middle of the stem; found in temperate Asia and North America and Europe)

genus Liparis (genus of terrestrial and epiphytic orchids; pantropical to temperate)

genus Laelia (large genus of mostly epiphytic or lithophytic Central and South American orchids of various sizes)

genus Himantoglossum; Himantoglossum (small genus of terrestrial orchids of Europe and Mediterranean region)

genus Hexalectris; Hexalectris (a monocotyledonous genus of the family Orchidaceae)

genus Habenaria; Habenaria (chiefly terrestrial orchids with tubers or fleshy roots often having long slender spurs and petals and lip lobes; includes species formerly placed in genus Gymnadeniopsis)

genus Gymnadeniopsis; Gymnadeniopsis (genus of North American terrestrial orchids usually included in genus Habenaria)

genus Scaphosepalum; Scaphosepalum (comprises some tropical American species usually placed in genus Masdevallia: diminutive plants with small flowers carried on one scape)

genus Vanilla (large genus of tropical climbing orchids; Old and New Worlds)

genus Vanda (genus of showy epiphytic orchids of Himalayas to Malaysia)

genus Trichoceros; Trichoceros (small genus of small epiphytic or terrestrial orchids of tropical South America)

genus Stelis (genus of small caespitose orchids of tropical America)

genus Stanhopea (genus of tropical American epiphytic orchids)

genus Spiranthes; Spiranthes (large cosmopolitan genus of white-flowered terrestrial orchids)

genus Sobralia (genus of tropical American orchids)

genus Selenipedium; Selenipedium (genus of tall reedlike tropical American orchids; includes species with pods used locally as a substitute for vanilla)

genus Schomburgkia; Schomburgkia (genus of tropical American epiphytic orchids with showy racemose flowers)

genus Grammatophyllum; Grammatophyllum (small genus of large epiphytic or terrestrial orchids of southeastern Asia to Polynesia; the giants of the Orchidaceae having long narrow leaves and drooping flower clusters often 6 feet long)

genus Sarcochilus; Sarcochilus (diminutive epiphytic or lithophytic orchids with clumped short-stemmed foliage and arching racemes of colorful flowers; Australia and Polynesia to southeastern Asia)

genus Rhyncostylis; Rhyncostylis (genus of epiphytic orchids of tropical Asia)

genus Pterostylis; Pterostylis (genus of terrestrial orchids of Australia and New Zealand and western Pacific)

genus Psychopsis; Psychopsis (epiphytic orchids of Central and South America formerly included in genus Oncidium)

genus Pogonia (small but widely distributed genus of orchids closely related to genus Cleistes;: of damp or boggy areas of north temperate zone)

genus Pleurothallis (large genus of epiphytic or lithophytic orchids of tropical America)

genus Pleione; Pleione (small genus of dwarf orchids; India to Thailand and Taiwan)

genus Plectorrhiza; Plectorrhiza (small genus of Australian orchids)

genus Platanthera; Platanthera (herbaceous terrestrial orchids of temperate northern and southern hemispheres)

Bletilla; genus Bletilla (small genus of chiefly east Asiatic hardy terrestrial orchids similar to genus Bletia)

Cephalanthera; genus Cephalanthera (small genus of temperate Old World terrestrial orchids)

genus Cattleya (large and highly valued genus of beautiful tropical American epiphytic or lithophytic orchids; the typical orchids; known in many varieties)

Catasetum; genus Catasetum (genus of tropical American orchids having showy male and female flowers usually on separate inflorescences)

genus Calypso (one species found throughout much of northern North America and Eurasia)

Calopogon; genus Calopogon (terrestrial orchids of North America)

genus Calanthe (large and widely distributed genus of terrestrial orchids)

genus Caladenia (terrestrial orchids of Australia to New Caledonia)

Brassia; genus Brassia (genus of tropical American epiphytic orchids having striking axillary racemes of yellow to green spiderlike flowers with long slender sepals and warty lips: spider orchids)

genus Brassavola (genus of tropical American epiphytic or lithophytic rhizomatous orchids)

genus Goodyera; Goodyera (genus of small orchids of the northern hemisphere with creeping rhizomes and stalked ovate leaves and small flowers)

genus Bletia (genus of tropical American terrestrial orchids with large purple or pink flowers)

genus Arethusa (genus of bog orchids of North America and Japan)

Aplectrum; genus Aplectrum (a monocotyledonous genus of the family Orchidaceae)

Anoectochilus; genus Anoectochilus (genus of delicate Asiatic orchids)

Angraecum; genus Angraecum; genus Angrecum (genus of tropical Old World epiphytic orchids with showy flowers sometimes grotesque)

genus Aerides (epiphytic orchids of tropical Asia having stiff leaves and fragrant white flowers in arching racemes)

genus Orchis (type genus of the orchid family; hardy terrestrial orchids of the temperate the northern hemisphere)

orchid; orchidaceous plant (any of numerous plants of the orchid family usually having flowers of unusual shapes and beautiful colors)

Coeloglossum; genus Coeloglossum (terrestrial orchids of cooler parts of North America and Europe: satyr orchid)

genus Gymnadenia; Gymnadenia (small genus of terrestrial orchids of North America and temperate Eurasia)

genus Glossodia; Glossodia (small genus of Australian orchids)

Epipactis; genus Epipactis (genus of hardy orchids with leafy-bracted racemes of greenish or purplish irregular flowers)

Epidendrum; genus Epidendrum (large and variable genus of terrestrial or epiphytic or lithophytic orchids of tropical and subtropical Americas; some native to United States)

Encyclia; genus Encyclia (large genus of epiphytic and lithophytic orchids of tropical and subtropical Americas and West Indies; formerly included in genus Epidendrum)

Eburophyton; genus Eburophyton (a monocotyledonous genus of the family Orchidaceae)

Dryadella; genus Dryadella (comprises tropical American species usually placed in genus Masdevallia: very dwarf plants having short tufted and usually unifoliate stems with usually solitary flowers)

Dracula; genus Dracula (comprises tropical American species usually placed in genus Masdevallia: diminutive plants having bizarre and often sinister-looking flowers with pendulous scapes and motile lips)

genus Disa (genus of showy tropical African terrestrial orchids)

genus Dendrobium (large genus and variable genus of chiefly epiphytic or lithophytic orchids of tropical and subtropical Asia and Australasia)

Dactylorhiza; genus Dactylorhiza (genus of terrestrial orchids of Europe and Asia and North Africa)

Cypripedium; genus Cypripedium (genus of chiefly American perennial leafy-stemmed orchids: lady's slippers; sometimes includes species of genus Paphiopedilum)

genus Cymbidium (genus of tropical epiphytic or terrestrial Old World orchids; one of the most popular orchid genera)

Cycnoches; genus Cycnoches (genus of epiphytic or terrestrial tropical American orchids)

Coryanthes; genus Coryanthes (small genus of tropical American epiphytic or lithophytic orchids)

Corallorhiza; genus Corallorhiza (genus of leafless root-parasitic orchids having small purplish or yellowish racemose flowers with lobed lips; widely distributed in temperate regions)

genus Coelogyne (large diverse genus of tropical Asiatic epiphytic orchids)

Cleistes; genus Cleistes (terrestrial orchids of North and South America having slender fibrous roots; allied to genus Pogonia)

Holonyms ("orchid family" is a member of...):

Orchidales; order Orchidales (order of plants with irregular flowers having minute seeds: Orchidaceae; Burmanniaceae)