lichen /ˈlaɪ.kən/noun 2verb 1forms 3 noun2 •Any of many symbiotic organisms, being associations of algae and fungi, often found as white or yellow-to-blue–green patches on rocks, old walls, etc.The Beaches of Lukannon–the winter wheat so tall, / The dripping, crinkled lichens, and the sea-fog drenching all! — 1894 •(figurative) Something which gradually spreads across something else, causing damage.Meanwhile, abiding a day of judgment, she fought ceaselessly to deny the bitter drops in her cup, to tear back the slow, the intangibly slow growth of a hot, corrosive lichen eating into her heart. — 1912 verb1 •To cover with lichen.[…] making the rocks assume the mould of age and lichening the trees with damp beauty. — 1903 formslichened · lichening · lichens
