painted lady

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painted lady (plural painted ladies)

1. Any of certain cryptic patterned butterflies of genus Vanessa (family Nymphalidae), especially Vanessa cardui.

   Synonym: (US) cosmopolite

2. A painted trillium (Trillium undulatum), a forest wildflower of North America.
3. A flower of the pea family (Gompholobium scabrum), native to southwestern Australia.
4. (slang, dated or historical) A prostitute (in reference to their use of makeup).

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:prostitute

   • 2011, Jan MacKell, Red Light Women of the Rocky Mountains, page 348:

     In Cheyenne in 1883, a Dr. W.A. Wyan tried in vain to save painted lady Sallie Talbot.

5. (US, architecture) A Victorian house repainted with vibrant colors to accentuate the architectural design, especially in San Francisco, California.
   • 2006, Karen Zukowski, Creating the Artful Home, Gibbs Smith, →ISBN, page 80:

     An archetypal American streetscape is lined with Aesthetic movement houses: Stick Style cottages with muscular roof trusses and exposed timbering; many-colored painted ladies with gingerbread porches; […]

6. A sea snail (Phasianella australis).

• Vanessa cardui on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• painted ladies on Wikipedia.Wikipedia