Definition of "vetchling" [vetch•ling]

• Any of several plants of the genus Lathyrus, having pinnately compound leaves, slender tendrils, and variously colored flowers. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "The symmetry of many plants is akin to the spirit of ancient peoples – woad, with leaves like roughly made arrow-heads; golden saxifrage, with its calix like a Roman urn; meadow-vetchling, with its curious stipules like spearheads locked in conflict."
• "Meadow vetchling, and the tall meadow crowfoot, with rich yellow blooms and dainty leaves, are set off by the pinks of the clover and the crimson of stray sainfoin clusters."
• "The yellow vetchling had climbed up from the ditch and opened its flower, and there were young nuts on the hazel bough."