water lily

noun

Definition of water lily

: any of various aquatic plants (especially genera Nymphaea and Nuphar of the family Nymphaeaceae, the water-lily family) with floating leaves and usually showy flowers broadly : an aquatic plant (such as a water hyacinth) with showy flowers

Examples of water lily in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Visitors can also relax in a wooden gazebo that overlooks a picturesque koi pond, planted with water lilies and grasses. — Jill K. Robinson, San Francisco Chronicle, "Santa Barbara serenity abounds in region’s 5 best public gardens," 14 June 2018 The surface of Half Hill Pond is filled with water lilies. — Peter Marteka, courant.com, "Hikers, Are You Up To The Challenge Of These 14 Trails?," 15 May 2018 Later a visitor from the Bonn botanical garden stops by and is stunned to find more than 100 of these tiny water lilies flourishing at Kew. — Richard Conniff, WSJ, "‘The Plant Messiah’ Review: The Miracle Worker," 13 Apr. 2018 Notes include pink grapefruit, anjou pear, and water lily at the top; gardenia, tiare flower, and tuberose at the middle; sandalwood, solar amber, and musk at the base. — Jenna Rosenstein, Harper's BAZAAR, "What People Really Think Of Kim Kardashian West's New Perfume Crystal Gardenia," 15 Nov. 2017 The world’s smallest water lily (Nymphaea thermarum) is native to a hot spring in Rwanda. — Richard Conniff, WSJ, "‘The Plant Messiah’ Review: The Miracle Worker," 13 Apr. 2018 Transplant and feed water lilies and bog plants. 57. — Tom Maccubbin, OrlandoSentinel.com, "April in the garden," 31 Mar. 2018 Consumption of lotus blossoms and water lilies is noted in ancient Egyptian papyrus scrolls. — Paul Stephen, San Antonio Express-News, "Flower power: Edible blooms add a new dimension to dishes," 14 Mar. 2018 The way the chords are placed on the keys (flat-fingered on the black notes) is not so much a vision of reflections, whether trees, clouds or water lilies. — Stephen Hough, New York Times, "100 Years After Debussy’s Death, He Remains the First ‘Modern’ Composer," 2 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'water lily.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.