Dodder
/ˈdɒd.ər/noun
A leafless parasitic plant with yellowish stems that twines around other plants, or a verb meaning to tremble or move unsteadily.
Did you know?Dodder’s older name was linked to its twisting, threadlike growth, and the plant became a classic example of a parasitic life-form that seems almost ghostlike in how it feeds on other plants.
Etymological Timeline
Old English
OE
dodder
“A plant name, probably referring to a tangled or dangling growth”
Middle English
ME
dodderen
“To tremble, shake, or move unsteadily”
15th–16th Century
English
dodder
“To shake or tremble with age or weakness”
Modern English
English
dodder
“A parasitic plant; also, to move feebly or unsteadily”