foxtail grass
Noun: 1. A type of grass with a dense, brush-like flower spike: Any of various grasses belonging to the genera Alopecurus (foxtails) and Setaria (bristlegrasses), characterized by their dense, silky, or bristly flowering spikes that resemble a fox's tail. 2. A common name for a clubmoss: A common name for Lycopodiella alopecuroides, a type of ground pine plant that is thickly covered with bristly leaves, found in moist, sandy, or peaty coastal regions.
- Sense 1 (Grass):
- The meadow was dotted with foxtail grass, its soft, silky spikes waving in the wind.
- Farmers consider some types of foxtail grass to be problematic weeds in cultivated fields.
- Sense 2 (Clubmoss):
- In the boggy coastal plain, we found patches of foxtail grass (ground pine) growing in the wet peat.
- The term is primarily used in botanical and agricultural contexts. In casual use, it most often refers to the weedy grasses (Sense 1).
- The specific meaning is usually clear from the context (e.g., discussing a meadow vs. a coastal bog).
- Foxtail (noun): A common shortened form, typically referring to the grass (Sense 1) and its distinctive seed head.
- The dog came back from the field with foxtails stuck in its fur.
- Bristlegrass (noun): A synonym for grasses in the genus .
- Meadow Foxtail (noun): A specific common name for .
- Yellow Foxtail (noun): A common name for , a weedy grass.
- For Sense 1 (Grass): Bristlegrass.
- For Sense 2 (Clubmoss): Foxtail clubmoss, ground pine.
This word has two distinct botanical meanings: 1. The more common meaning refers to true grasses (family Poaceae) with a specific flower shape. 2. The less common meaning refers to a type of clubmoss (family Lycopodiaceae), which is not a true grass but a primitive vascular plant. This dual meaning is an example of a shared common name for unrelated plants.
- grasses of the genera Alopecurus and Setaria having dense silky or bristly brushlike flowering spikes
- ground pine thickly covered with bristly leaves; widely distributed in barren sandy or peaty moist coastal regions of eastern and southeastern United States