kentia

noun

ken·​tia

ˈkentēə

1

capitalized : a genus of pinnate-leaved palms that are natives of Australia and the East Indies and have spadices with angled branchlets and flowers with six stamens

2

plural -s : any of several palms formerly assigned to the genus Kentia: such as

a

: either of two feather palms (Howea forsteriana and H. belmoriana) from Lord Howe Island that are extensively cultivated for their ornamental foliage

b

: umbrella palm sense 1

Word History

Etymology

New Latin, from William Kent †ab 1828 Dutch gardener and traveler in the Orient + New Latin -ia

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