fuchsia
Americannoun
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fuchsias
plural
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a plant belonging to the genus Fuchsia, of the evening primrose family, including many varieties cultivated for their handsome drooping flowers.
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Also called California fuchsia. a nonwoody shrub, Zauschneria californica, having large crimson flowers.
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a bright, purplish-red color.
adjective
noun
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any onagraceous shrub of the mostly tropical genus Fuchsia , widely cultivated for their showy drooping purple, red, or white flowers
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Also called: California fuchsia. a North American onagraceous plant, Zauschneria californica , with tubular scarlet flowers
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a reddish-purple to purplish-pink colour
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( as adjective )
a fuchsia dress
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Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of fuchsia
1745–55; < New Latin; named after Leonhard Fuchs (1501–66), German botanist; see -ia
Explanation
Fuchsia is a deep pink color named after a tropical flower. If you want to grab people's attention, wear a fuchsia swimsuit. Fuchsia, the flower, is native to warm places like the Caribbean, Mexico, and Tahiti, but they are now found all over the world, including the United States. They are distinctive for boldly colored, often droopy flowers, and their wild colors inspired the name of the color fuchsia, a deep reddish pink. The plant fuchsia got its name from the German botanist, Leonard Fuchs, who first discovered it.
Vocabulary lists containing fuchsia
Some Obscure Eponyms
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Pink
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Nory Ryan's Song
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
His bubbly companion, a British woman with a fuchsia and white scarf, talked a mile a minute.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 31, 2026
Labour MSPs had their traditional red rose, Reform UK a Scottish heather, the Greens what appeared to be a fuchsia pink gerbera and the Liberal Democrats a mini-mixed bouquet.
From BBC ● May 14, 2026
Onlookers are invited to be mesmerized by the fuchsia flames of Gwi-Ma’s realm as the movie’s hooky synth pop bounces in the foreground.
From Salon ● Dec. 18, 2025
The red, deep-throated flowers of California fuchsia typically don’t appear until the late summer and early fall.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2025
The smell of spring, or fuchsia growing along the walls in August.
From "Nory Ryan’s Song" by Patricia Reilly Giff
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“Our founders, Evelyn and Bob Weidner, specialized in growing begonias, then fuchsias and impatiens and on from there. We’re a full-service nursery; we also sell fruit trees and vegetables. But our specialty is flowers.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 20, 2025
Calscape, the California Native Plant Society’s plant database, says there is no better single plant than California fuchsias for attracting hummers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 2, 2025
That said, some fuchsia growers routinely prune to control size by cutting their fuchsias back to about 4 to 6 inches in the spring.
From Seattle Times ● May 13, 2023
"Things we'd expect to flower into October, like fuchsias and salvias, are still flowering now and show no signs of stopping," Ms Barker said.
From BBC ● Nov. 25, 2022
As the firelight caught the crimson and purple bells of the fuchsias, they seemed to sway—to ring forth a faint, wild music....
From Shadows of Flames A Novel by Amélie Rives
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.