ribbon fern n 1: fern of North Africa and Azores and Canary Islands [syn: {spider fern}, {Pteris serrulata}] 2: epiphytic fern found in lowland forests of tropical America [syn: {grass fern}, {Vittaria lineata}] 3: epiphytic fern with straplike usually twisted fronds of tropical Asia and Polynesia and America [syn: {Ophioglossum pendulum}]