‖He‐pat″i‐ca (?), n.; pl.Hepaticæ (#). [NL. See Hepatic. So called in allusion to the shape of the lobed leaves or fronds.]
1. (Bot.) A genus of pretty spring flowers closely related to Anemone; squirrel cup.
2. (bot.) Any plant, usually procumbent and mosslike, of the cryptogamous class Hepaticæ; — called also scale moss and liverwort. See Hepaticæ, in the Supplement.