thistle butterfly

noun

A butterfly of the genus Vanessa, especially the painted lady Vanessa cardui.

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Meanings

nounthistle butterfly (plural thistle butterflies)

plural thistle butterflies

  1. A butterfly of the genus Vanessa, especially the painted lady Vanessa cardui.

    The butterflies were all of one description and among the most beautiful of our country. They were caught very easily in a net, and were recognized as the thistle butterfly, called in French, the belle-dame.

    1828 July, “Emigration of Butterflies”, in Benjamin Silliman, editor, The American Journal of Science and Arts, volume 14, page 388

Translations

Finnish ohdakeperhonen
  • ohdakeperhonenVanessa cardui
Cite this entry
APA

thistle butterfly. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/thistle%20butterfly

MLA

“thistle butterfly.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/thistle%20butterfly. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “thistle butterfly,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/thistle%20butterfly.

Source: thistle butterfly on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.