bougainvillea

American  

[boo-guhn-vil-ee-uh, -vil-yuh, boh-] / ˌbu gənˈvɪl i ə, -ˈvɪl yə, ˌboʊ- /

noun

1. any of several shrubs or vines of the genus Bougainvillea, native to South America, having small flowers with showy, variously colored bracts, and often cultivated in warm regions.

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bougainvillea British  

/ ˌbuːɡənˈvɪlɪə /

noun

1. any tropical woody nyctaginaceous widely cultivated climbing plant of the genus Bougainvillea , having inconspicuous flowers surrounded by showy red or purple bracts

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Etymology

Origin of bougainvillea

1789; < New Latin, named after L. A. de Bougainville

Example Sentences

Its entrance is sealed with a crude brick-and-mud wall, and an overgrown bougainvillea, bright with pink blooms, spills over the front boundary.

From BBC

These days, I notice fuchsia bursts of bougainvillea instead of my mushy backside.

From Los Angeles Times

In a neighbourhood close to the scene of the attack - where plush villas and foreign embassies sit behind high walls, topped with bougainvillea - the streets lay empty.

From BBC

I said these things as if I were asking, “Aren’t I amazing?” and “Isn’t looking at me next to a bougainvillea spectacular?”

From Los Angeles Times

The lush motif is carried outdoors to the deck off of the kitchen, where the hillside’s palm trees, bougainvillea and citrus provide shade for the dining table and chairs.

From Los Angeles Times