Polycarpaea is a genus of plants in the family Caryophyllaceae. It contains 79 species native to tropical and subtropical regions of South America, Africa and Madagascar, the Indian subcontinent, Indochina, southern China, Taiwan, the Philippines, New Guinea, and Australia. The genus was named by Jean-Baptiste Lamarck in 1792.

Molecular phylogenetic analysis showed that the genus is polyphyletic and needs to be redefined. It falls into three distinct clades. One of these, a group of species related to P. corymbosa, has acquired the C₄ photosynthetic pathway.

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