nenuphar · noun — A water lily, especially the European white water lily (Nymphaea alba) or the yellow water lily (Nuphar lutea). It carries an Arena rating of 1609, earned across 60 head-to-head judged battles.
Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, nenuphar ranks #980 of 17,195 for Most Exacting Words, #1,383 of 17,165 for Most Satisfying to Say, #1,458 of 17,197 for Best Fossil-Poetry Words, #1,515 of 17,177 for Most Whimsical Words.
nenuphar is pronounced /ˈnɛnjʊfɑː/.
Why “nenuphar” is a great word
NENUPHAR — [Noun] A water lily, specifically the European white (Nymphaea alba) or yellow (Nuphar lutea) species whose leaves and blossoms float upon the water's surface. From Medieval Latin nenuphar, from Arabic نِينُوفَر (nīnūfar), from Middle Persian nīlōpal ("lotus, water-lily"), from Sanskrit नीलोत्पल (nīlotpala, "blue lotus"), from नील (nīla, "blue") + उत्पल (utpala, "lotus, water-lily"). Unlike "lotus," which denotes the emergent genus Nelumbo holding its blooms aloft, or the generic "pond lily," which floats without this precise etymological anchor, nenuphar is the floating flower itself, rooted in mud and history. It is the opaque white petal a dragonfly uses as a landing pad at dusk, the broad, waxy leaf that cradles the weight of a descending raindrop, and the secret, submerged stem tethering a world of light and air to the dark, silty deep—a quiet testament to how serene beauty remains anchored in unseen and ancient darkness.
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Etymology
From Medieval Latin nenuphar, from Arabic نِلُوفَر (nilūfar), نِينُوفَر (nīnūfar), from Middle Persian nylw(k)pl (nīlōpal, “lotus, water-lily”), from Sanskrit नीलोत्पल (nīlotpala, “blue lotus”), from नील (nīla, “blue”) + उत्पल (utpala, “lotus, water-lily”). Compare French nénufar.
noun
- A water lily, especially the European white water lily (Nymphaea alba) or the yellow water lily (Nuphar lutea).e.g.“We'll try the «lunar waltz» while floats afar / Upon the liquid night — night's nenuphar.” — 1920, Natalie Clifford Barney, “A Parisian Roof Garden in 1918”, in Poems & poèmes:
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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