Spectabilis
/spek-TAH-bih-lis/🏷️ Taxonomy●● Intermediate
Also known as: spectabile
An aesthetic epithet meaning the plant is remarkable and worth seeing — spectacular, showy, or visually striking. One of the most enthusiastically positive descriptors in botanical Latin. Appears as spectabilis (both genders).
Etymology
From Latin spectabilis, meaning "worth seeing" or "remarkable," from spectare (to behold).
Example
“Dicentra spectabilis (bleeding heart) and Primula spectabilis are plants of exceptional visual impact — the epithet a direct invitation from the naming botanist to stop and look.”