PLANTAIN (2)

Plan″tain, n. [[F., fr. L. plantago. Cf. Plant.]] (Bot.) Any plant of the genus Plantago, but especially the P. major, a low herb with broad spreading radical leaves, and slender spikes of minute flowers. It is a native of Europe, but now found near the abode of civilized man in nearly all parts of the world. Indian plantain. (Bot.) See under Indian. — Mud plantain, a homely North American aquatic plant (Heteranthera reniformis), having broad, reniform leaves. — Rattlesnake plantain, an orchidaceous plant (Goodyera pubescens), with the leaves blotched and spotted with white. — Ribwort plantain. See Ribwort. — Robin's plantain, the Erigeron bellidifolium, a common daisylike plant of North America. — Water plantain, a plant of the genus Alisma, having acrid leaves, and formerly regarded as a specific against hydrophobia. Loudon.