Meanings
- archaicpluralplural of orchis
Curcuma may easily be distinguished by its two-spurred anther, not very unlike that of some Orchisses: […]
1807, Richard Anthony Salisbury, The Paradisus Londinensis: Containing Plants Cultivated in the Vicinity of the Metropolis, volume II, part I, London: […] William Savage, […] William Hooker, […]5 more examples
As alſo your ſeverall ſorts of Satyrions which have the evident reſemblance of the genitall parts upon them: Aron eſpecially, and all your Orchiſſes, that they have given names unto from ſome beaſts or other, as Cynoſorchis, Orchis Myodes, Tragorchis and the like.
1653, Henry More, “The ’’Seeds’’ and ’’Signatures’’ of ’’Plants’’, arguments of a divine Providence”, in An Antidote against Atheisme, or An Appeal to the Natural Faculties of the Minde of Man, whether There Be Not a God, London: […] Roger Daniel, […], →OCLC, book II, page 67Radix Testiculata, a teſticulated root, is a double tuberous root; for it conſiſts of two knobs, reſembling a pair of teſticles; of this ſort are ſome of the Orchiſſes.
1774, James Gordon, “Appendix”, in The Planters, Florists, and Gardeners Pocket Dictionary; Being a Practical Collection from the Most Approved Authors in the English Language, […], Edinburgh: […] [T]he Author, page 55, column 1Fortunately it is a ſeaſon when he is eaſily amuſed—I ſend him out with his ſiſter and his maid into the ſurrounding meadows, where, after their maid has dreſſed their hats with cowſlips, orchiſſes, cuckoo-flowers, and golden-cups—my Harriet brings home her lap full of theſe “gay children of the May,” and, in her imperfect language, ſays, they are for “dear mama.”
1792, Charlotte Smith, “Letter XIV. To Miss Waverly.”, in Desmond. […], volume II, London: […] G[eorge,] G[eorge,] J[ohn] and J[ames] Robinson, […], →OCLC, page 195The ſoil on the baſe and ſides of Ingleborough (where there is any) is chiefly peatmoſs which the country people get up and burn for fuel: the cover is in general ling or heath: other vegetables are ferns of various kinds; reindeer moſs, and various other moſſes; heleborines, white and red; the different ſorts of ſeedums; crane’s bills, ſcurvy graſs, bird’s eyes, various liver-worts, orchiſſes, roſe-wort, lily of the valley, mountain columbines; the hurtle-berry or bill-berry, knout-berry, cran-berry, cloud-berry, and cow-berry.
1799, “Addenda”, in [Thomas West], A Guide to the Lakes, in Cumberland, Westmorland, and Lancashire, 7th edition, London: […] W. J. and J. Richardson, […], page 265All the trees of this country, and much the greatest part of those of Europe, are of this class, with most of those of the herbaceous species, with the only exception, perhaps, of the grasses, the sedges, the flags and rushes, the orchisses, and all the bulbous rooted plants, as they are generally called.
1833, General Observations on Vegetation; Translated from the French of C. F. Brisseau-Mirbel; to Which Are Added, Numerous and Extensive Notes: […], London: John Relfe, […], pages 11–12
Cite this entry
orchisses. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/orchisses
“orchisses.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/orchisses. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “orchisses,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/orchisses.
Source: orchisses on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.