bouncing Bet

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bouncing Bet

also bouncing bet  (bĕt)
n.
A perennial Eurasian herb (Saponaria officinalis) of the pink family, planted as an ornamental for its dense clusters of pink to whitish flowers and widely naturalized in the United States. Also called soapwort.
[From Bet, nickname for Elizabeth.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

bouncing Bet

(bɛt)
n
(Plants) another name for soapwort
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

soap•wort

(ˈsoʊpˌwɜrt, -ˌwɔrt)

n.
a plant, Saponaria officinalis, of the pink family, whose leaves are used for cleansing.
[1540–50]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Noun1.bouncing Bet - plant of European origin having pink or white flowers and leaves yielding a detergent when bruisedbouncing Bet - plant of European origin having pink or white flowers and leaves yielding a detergent when bruised
bouncing Bess, hedge pink, Saponaria officinalis, soapwort
flower - a plant cultivated for its blooms or blossoms
genus Saponaria, Saponaria - mostly perennial Old World herbs
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
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References in classic literature
Even on the hottest afternoons the cottonwoods made a rustling shade, and the air smelled of popcorn and melted butter, and Bouncing Bets wilting in the sun.
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There were rosy bleeding-hearts and great splendid crimson peonies; white, fragrant narcissi and thorny, sweet Scotch roses; pink and blue and white columbines and lilac-tinted Bouncing Bets; clumps of southernwood and ribbon grass and mint; purple Adam-and-Eve, daffodils, and masses of sweet clover white with its delicate, fragrant, feathery sprays; scarlet lightning that shot its fiery lances over prim white musk-flowers; a garden it was where sunshine lingered and bees hummed, and winds, beguiled into loitering, purred and rustled.
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Every time I get a whiff of "Bouncing Bet" (aka soapwort, Saponaria officinalis) I am a little girl again sniffing one elderly neighbor's flowers--and hoping she wouldn't catch me!
Young Fan
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