buttercup

Meaning

1. Any of many herbs, of the genus Ranunculus, having yellow flowers; the crowfoot.
2. Any flower of the genus Narcissus; a daffodil.
3. (abbreviation, alt-of, ellipsis) Ellipsis of buttercup squash.
4. Affectionate or ironic term of address.

Synonyms

crowfoot

spearwort

goldcup

kingcup

butterflower

yellow-cup

butter-flower

water crowfoot

ranunculus

marigold

Translations

Hahnenfuß

renoncule

ranuncolo

ranúnculo

boterbloem

Butterblume

grenouillette

gobet du diable

fleur de l’impatience

ranonkel

bouton-d’or

Ranunculaceae spp.

Ranunculus

bouton d’or

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈbʌt.ə.kʌp/

Etymology

From butter + cup. Both sense 1 and 2 are from the flowers' association with butter, from their yellow colour. Compare butterflower for a similar derivation; outside of English, compare Dutch boterbloem, German Butterblume.