| the large plant family Labiatae (or Lamiaceae), characterized by aromatic herbaceous plants having square stems, simple leaves, clusters of two-lipped flowers, and fruit in the form of small nutlets, and including basil, bee balm, catnip, coleus, lavender, marjoram, oregano, peppermint, rosemary, sage, spearmint, and thyme. |
| mint family n. A large family of aromatic herbs, the Labiatae (or Lamiaceae), including lavender, mint, rosemary, sage, and thyme and characterized by opposite leaves, square stems, bilaterally symmetrical flowers with united petals, and a four-lobed ovary that produces four one-seeded nutlets. |
mint family
the mint family of flowering plants, with 236 genera and more than 7,000 species, the largest family of the order Lamiales. It is important to humans for herb plants useful for flavour, fragrance, or medicinal properties. Most members of the family have square stems; paired, opposite, simple leaves; and two-lipped, open-mouthed, tubular corollas (united petals), with five-lobed, bell-like calyxes (united sepals).
Learn more about mint family with a free trial on Britannica.com.