Liberal Dictionary English Dictionary
noun
- any of various plants belonging to the genus Alyssum, of the mustard family, having clusters of small yellow or white flowers.
- any of several related plants of the genus Aurinia, as A. saxatilis, a widely cultivated species with yellow flowers.
- sweet alyssum.
noun
- any widely cultivated herbaceous garden plant of the genus Alyssum, having clusters of small yellow or white flowers: family Brassicaceae (crucifers)See also sweet alyssum, alison
genus name for plants of the mustard family, 1550s, from Latin alysson, from Greek alysson, which is perhaps the neuter of adjective alyssos “curing madness,” from privative prefix a- + lyssa “madness, rage, fury.”