jonquil

[jong-kwil, jon-]

noun

1. a narcissus, Narcissus jonquilla, having long, narrow, rushlike leaves and fragrant, yellow or white flowers.

jonquil

/ ˈdʒɒŋkwɪl /

noun

1. a Eurasian amaryllidaceous plant, Narcissus jonquilla with long fragrant yellow or white short-tubed flowers

2. any of various other small daffodil-like plants

Word History and Origins

Origin of jonquil¹

1620–30; < French jonquille < Spanish junquillo, equivalent to junc ( o ) rush, reed (< Latin juncus ) + -illo diminutive suffix

Word History and Origins

Origin of jonquil¹

C17: from French jonquille, from Spanish junquillo, diminutive of junco reed; see _junco

Example Sentences

In the South, daffodils are sometimes known as jonquils, because the jonquil was the one type of daffodil that could reliably grow in a climate with milder winters and hotter summers.

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Their tiny glass perfume flacons, worn on a chain around the neck, were adorned in enamel with ukiyo-e-inspired scenes of snow-capped mountains or herons in fields of jonquils.

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Druse recommends 13 scented jonquil varieties, including Baby Moon, Pipit, Suzy and Sailboat.

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“Aw, shah!” she snapped, jabbing a cone-shaped tin cemetery urn into the ground for the jonquils we brought.

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The city was a mad March quilt of daffodils and jonquils, the streets stitched in yellow bands of forsythia.

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