boutonniere
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of boutonniere
1875–80; < French boutonnière buttonhole ( bouton button + -ière suffix for things that facilitate the use of that denoted by the stem < Latin -āria -ary
Compare meaning
How does boutonniere compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
A boutonniere is a flower or flowers worn in a buttonhole of a man's suit. A boutonniere is a fancy decoration that you might wear to your prom. Have you ever seen a flower poking out of a buttonhole in a man's suit? If so, you have seen a boutonniere. This is a French word for a flowers or flowers decorating a suit in this way. If you're wearing a suit and want to make it a little more colorful, a boutonniere is one way to do so. Just make sure you pick a flower for your boutonniere that goes well with your suit.
Vocabulary lists containing boutonniere
On Trend: Fashionable Words
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English Words Derived from French, List 11
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Prom Time
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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.
He finished his wedding-day look with a brooch, ruling out a boutonniere.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 19, 2026
We turned that over and over during the drive that followed until I burst out laughing — the crazed kind that might result from being sprayed in the face by the Joker's trick boutonniere.
From Salon • Dec. 6, 2024
Sitting in his parents’ backyard in mid-May, he showed off pictures of Baby Elliott, then 9 months old, at prom the night before, wearing a tiny floral boutonniere Walton had made in an agriculture class.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 14, 2023
Sean Perry was wearing a U-Va. tie, and his wife had a U-Va. boutonniere, Haggard said, as they spoke by phone.
From Washington Post • Dec. 14, 2022
A boutonniere is a flower that a man wears in the button of his jacket.
From "Blended" by Sharon M. Draper
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.
