sphagnum

UK: /ˈsfæɡnəm/ US: (sfag′nəm)

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

sphag•num  (sfag′nəm), n. 

1. Plant Biology any soft moss of the genus Sphagnum, occurring chiefly in bogs, used for potting and packing plants, for dressing wounds, etc.

• Neo-Latin, alteration of Greek sphágnos a moss
• 1745–55

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

sphagnum / ˈsfæɡnəm/ noun ( -na)

1. any moss of the genus Sphagnum, of temperate bogs, having leaves capable of holding much water: layers of these mosses decay to form peat
   Also called: peat moss, bog moss

Etymology: 18th Century: from New Latin, from Greek sphagnos a variety of moss

ˈsphagnous adjective