also: かわほね
noun
Japanese spatterdock; Nuphar japonica
A species of water lily native to Japan. The name is usually written in kana.
池にコウホネが咲いている。
Japanese spatterdock is blooming in the pond.
Kanji spelling; rarely used in practice. The characters literally mean 'river bone'.
Variant kanji spelling; also rare.
Alternate reading; less common than こうほね.
The kanji 河骨 (literally 'river bone') likely refer to the plant's thick rhizomes, but the exact derivation is uncertain.