# buttercup

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈbʌt.ə.kʌp/ · frequency rank #37,360

## Definitions
1. Any of many herbs, of the genus Ranunculus, having yellow flowers; the crowfoot.
2. Any flower of the genus Narcissus; a daffodil.
3. Ellipsis of buttercup squash.
4. Affectionate or ironic term of address.

## Etymology
From butter + cup. Both sense 1 and 2 are from the flowers' association with butter, from their yellow colour. Compare butterflower for a similar derivation; outside of English, compare Dutch boterbloem, German Butterblume.

## Easily confused with
- **butternut** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/buttercup-vs-butternut)

## Common misspellings (12)
`bbuttercup`, `btutercup`, `butercup`, `butetrcup`, `buttecrup`, `butterccup`, `buttercpu`, `buttercupp`, `butterrcup`, `butterucp`, `buttrecup`, `ubttercup`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/buttercup