透骨草科 (Schauer 1847)以前只分成一属—透骨草属（Phryma）一种透骨草（Phryma leptostachya Linn.），但最新的基因分析认为许多原来在玄参科的属应该列入本科，重新分成11属约190种，。主要分布在北美洲，约有160种，其次在澳洲有约30种，另外30种分布在世界各地。

本科植物为一年生或多年生草本，也有高达4米的灌木，花萼5，管状有齿；心皮内有两个薄板，果实为蒴果开裂。

1981年的克朗奎斯特分类法将其列入马鞭草科内，1998年根据基因亲缘关系分类的APG 分类法将新扩大的本科列入唇形目。

Phrymaceae, also known as the lopseed family, is a small family of flowering plants in the order Lamiales. It has a nearly cosmopolitan distribution, but is concentrated in two centers of diversity, one in Australia, the other in western North America. Members of this family occur in diverse habitats, including deserts, river banks and mountains.