'Dipsacus sylvestris' definitions:

Definition of 'Dipsacus sylvestris'

(from WordNet)
noun
European teasel with white to pink flowers; naturalized in United States [syn: wild teasel, Dipsacus sylvestris]

Definition of 'Dipsacus sylvestris'

From: GCIDE
  • Teasel \Tea"sel\, n. [OE. tesel, AS. t[=ae]sel, t[=ae]sl, the fuller's herb. See Tease.] [Written also tassel, tazel, teasle, teazel, and teazle.]
  • 1. (Bot.) A plant of the genus Dipsacus, of which one species (Dipsacus fullonum) bears a large flower head covered with stiff, prickly, hooked bracts. This flower head, when dried, is used for raising a nap on woolen cloth. [1913 Webster]
  • Note: Small teasel is Dipsacus pilosus, wild teasel is Dipsacus sylvestris. [1913 Webster]
  • 2. A bur of this plant. [1913 Webster]
  • 3. Any contrivance intended as a substitute for teasels in dressing cloth. [1913 Webster]
  • Teasel frame, a frame or set of iron bars in which teasel heads are fixed for raising the nap on woolen cloth. [1913 Webster]