sphagnum

American

[sfag-nuhm] / ˈsfæg nəm /

noun

any soft moss of the genus Sphagnum, occurring chiefly in bogs, used for potting and packing plants, for dressing wounds, etc.

sphagnum British

/ ˈsfæɡnəm /

noun

Also called: peat moss. bog moss. any moss of the genus Sphagnum, of temperate bogs, having leaves capable of holding much water: layers of these mosses decay to form peat

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

sphagnum Scientific

/ sfăg′nəm /

See peat moss

Other Word Forms

sphagnous adjective

Etymology

Origin of sphagnum

1745–55; < New Latin, alteration of Greek sphágnos a moss

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The sphagnum austinii has been brought from Scotland, where it still grows, to the Yorkshire Dales and is being propagated in local nurseries before it is planted within the blanket bogs.

From BBC

This included persuading the War Office of the benefits of using sphagnum moss for wound dressings.

From BBC

And in peat bogs, the acid in sphagnum moss puts soft tissue through a tanning process that often preserves brain tissue.

From Science Magazine

This is often capped with sphagnum moss, making the ground soft and treacherous.

From National Geographic

But their full decomposition was blocked by the chemicals that are produced when sphagnum moss, the main moss that comprises peat, degrades.

From National Geographic

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023