bluebell

American  

[bloo-bel] / ˈbluˌbɛl /

noun

1. any of numerous plants of the bellflower family, having blue, bell-shaped flowers, as a bellflower or harebell.

2. Also called wood hyacinth.  an Old World plant, Endymion non-scriptus, of the lily family, having blue, bell-shaped flowers.

3. any of various other plants having blue flowers, as those of the genus Mertensia.

---

bluebell British  

/ ˈbluːˌbɛl /

noun

1. Also called: wild hyacinth.   wood hyacinth.  a European liliaceous woodland plant, Hyacinthoides (or Endymion ) non-scripta , having a one-sided cluster of blue bell-shaped flowers

2. Also called: Spanish bluebell.  a similar and related plant, hispanica , widely grown in gardens and becoming naturalized

3. a Scot name for harebell

4. any of various other plants with blue bell-shaped flowers

---

Other Word Forms

• bluebelled adjective

Etymology

Origin of bluebell

First recorded in 1570–80; blue + bell ¹

Example Sentences

These plants were the top species magnets: black willow, a goldenrod named Euthamia graminifolia, Virginia bluebell and New York ironweed.

From Washington Post • Apr. 27, 2021

So once the pandemic is contained, the bluebell fields might even look better.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 20, 2021

I try to be self-sufficient, growing my own vegetables and fruit and enjoying the companionship and eggs from two bluebell chickens.

From The Guardian • Dec. 8, 2016

She started the day smelling like a bluebell, then became enamored with the combination of incense and cedar.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 25, 2016

It was gloriously warm after the pool and the forest, the only illumination the bluebell flames still shimmering in a bowl on the floor.

From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling