cattleya

noun

cat·​tle·​ya ˈkat-lē-ə 

kat-ˈlā-ə, 

-ˈlē-

: any of a genus (Cattleya) of tropical American epiphytic orchids with showy hooded flowers

Examples of cattleya in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The Orchids Are Must-See In the orchid room, 250 types of phalaenopsis and cattleya orchids are arranged along the walls at all four sides. — Jenny Hughes, The Spruce, 9 Apr. 2026

Unlike Santal Blush and Tobacco Vanille, Flowerbomb is a floral fragrance with notes of cattleya, jasmine, and rose layered with patchouli and vanilla. — Rebecca Norris, InStyle, 13 Mar. 2026

The four perfumers behind the original scent focused on floral notes (jasmine, orange blossom, rose, and cattleya) to get the explosion just right. — Margaux Anbouba, Vogue, 21 Mar. 2025

Another solid beginner’s choice is a corsage orchid (cattleya bicolor). — Karen Hugg, Washington Post, 12 Feb. 2024

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from New Latin Cattleya, genus name, from William Cattley †1835 English merchant & horticulturist

Note: The taxon Cattleya was introduced by the English botanist John Lindley (1799-1865) in Collectanea Botanica, or Figures and Botanical Illustrations of Rare and Curious Exotic Plants (London, 1821), tabula 33: "Our drawing [of Cattleya labiata] was drawn by Mr. Curtis from a specimen which flowered in Mr. Cattley's stove last November. Without exception it is the handsomest species of the order we have ever seen alive: and we have on that account the greater pleasure in publishing it, as it has given us an opportunity to pay a compliment to a gentleman, whose ardour in the collection, and whose unrivaled success in the cultivation, of the difficult tribe of plants to which it belongs, have long since given him the strongest claims to such a distinction."

First Known Use

1828, in the meaning defined above