skunk cabbage

noun

: any of several early-blooming perennial herbs of the arum family that occur in shaded, wet to swampy areas and have a fetid odor suggestive of a skunk:
a
: one (Symplocarpus foetidus) of eastern North America and eastern Asia that has a hoodlike, brownish-purple spathe
b
: one (Lysichiton americanus synonym L. americanum) chiefly of the Pacific coast region of North America that has a large yellow spathe
c
: one (Lysichiton camtschatcensis synonym L. camtschatcense) of eastern Asia that has a large white spathe

Illustration of skunk cabbage

Illustration of skunk cabbage
  • skunk cabbage b

Examples of skunk cabbage in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
By the creek, skunk cabbage pokes up reliably from the muck, its speckled, maroon-yellow spathe resembling a jester’s cap. — Daryln Brewer Hoffstot Kristian Thacker, New York Times, 23 Mar. 2024 Tobacco plants produce nicotine as an insecticide that deters predators; skunk cabbage and corpse flowers emit the stench of death to trick carrion-feeding insects into becoming their pollinators. — Barbara Spindel, WSJ, 22 Dec. 2023

Word History

First Known Use

1751, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of skunk cabbage was in 1751

Dictionary Entries Near skunk cabbage

skunkbush

skunk cabbage

skunk currant

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Skunk cabbage.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/skunk%20cabbage. Accessed 12 Nov. 2024.

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Kids Definition

skunk cabbage

noun
: either of two North American herbs that grow in wet areas, bloom in late winter or early spring, and have an odor like that of a skunk

More from Merriam-Webster on skunk cabbage

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about skunk cabbage

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