Christmas rose

American

[kris-muhs rohz] / ˈkrɪs məs ˌroʊz /

noun

a European hellebore, Helleborus niger, widely cultivated for its attractive and hardy evergreen leaves and white-to-purplish flowers that bloom in the winter: the entire Christmas rose plant is poisonous.

Christmas rose British

noun

Also called: hellebore. winter rose. an evergreen ranunculaceous plant, Helleborus niger, of S Europe and W Asia, with white or pinkish winter-blooming flowers

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of Christmas rose

First recorded in 1680–90

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.

Grocery sales over Christmas rose by 0.1% in the six weeks to 8 January, compared to the year before.

From BBC • Jan. 12, 2022

It said sales in the week before Christmas rose 6.8%, marking a fresh record for the 165-year old firm.

From BBC • Jan. 6, 2015

Retail sales between Thanksgiving and Christmas rose 2.7 percent, compared with 3.0 percent a year earlier, while the number of people walking into stores across the United States declined 14.6 percent, ShopperTrak said.

From Reuters • Jan. 8, 2014

They were decorated as a daffodil, a pink rose, a Michaelmas daisy and a Christmas rose.

From BBC • May 17, 2013

The Christmas rose, wax-like in its white purity, will bloom out of doors long after frost if a glass is turned over the plant on cold nights.

From Christmas Entertainments by Kellogg, Alice Maude

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023