flourish

American  

[flur-ish, fluhr-] / ˈflɜr ɪʃ, ˈflʌr- /

verb (used without object)

flourishes, present (3rd person singular) flourished, past participle, past flourishing present participle

1. to be in a vigorous state; thrive.

   a period in which art flourished.

   Synonyms:

   increase, grow

   Antonyms:

   decline, fade

2. to be in its or in one's prime; be at the height of fame, excellence, influence, etc.

3. to be successful; prosper.

4. to grow luxuriantly, or thrive in growth, as a plant.

5. to make dramatic, sweeping gestures.

   Flourish more when you act out the king's great death scene.

6. to add embellishments and ornamental lines to writing, letters, etc.

7. to sound a trumpet call or fanfare.

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verb (used with object)

flourishes, present (3rd person singular) flourished, past participle, past flourishing present participle

1. to brandish dramatically; gesticulate with.

   a conductor flourishing his baton for the crescendo.

2. to decorate or embellish (writing, a page of script, etc.) with sweeping or fanciful curves or lines.

   Synonyms:

   ornament

noun

flourishes plural

1. an act or instance of brandishing.

2. an ostentatious display.

3. a decoration or embellishment, especially in writing.

   He added a few flourishes to his signature.

   Synonyms:

   adornment, ornament

4. Rhetoric. a parade of fine language; an expression used merely for effect.

5. a trumpet call or fanfare.

6. a condition or period of thriving.

   in full flourish.

flourish British  

/ ˈflʌrɪʃ /

verb

1. (intr) to thrive; prosper

2. (intr) to be at the peak of condition

3. (intr) to be healthy

   plants flourish in the light

4. to wave or cause to wave in the air with sweeping strokes

5. to display or make a display

6. to play (a fanfare, etc) on a musical instrument

7. (intr) to embellish writing, characters, etc, with ornamental strokes

8. to add decorations or embellishments to (speech or writing)

9. (intr) an obsolete word for blossom

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noun

1. the act of waving or brandishing

2. a showy gesture

   he entered with a flourish

3. an ornamental embellishment in writing

4. a display of ornamental language or speech

5. a grandiose passage of music

6. an ostentatious display or parade

7. obsolete

   1. the state of flourishing

   2. the state of flowering

Synonym Usage

See succeed.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• flourisher
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• flourishes
  plural

Participles

• flourishing
  present
• flourished
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• flourish
  simple
• flourishes
  simple
• have flourished
  perfect
• has flourished
  perfect
• am flourishing
  progressive
• are flourishing
  progressive
• is flourishing
  progressive
• have been flourishing
  perfect progressive
• has been flourishing
  perfect progressive

Past

• flourished
  simple
• had flourished
  perfect
• was flourishing
  progressive
• were flourishing
  progressive
• had been flourishing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will flourish
  simple
• will have flourished
  perfect
• will be flourishing
  progressive
• will have been flourishing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of flourish

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English florisshen, from Middle French floriss-, long stem of florir, ultimately from Latin flōrēre “to bloom,” derivative of flōs flower

Explanation

A flourish is an extra touch — a trumpet's "ta-ta-da!" announcing a king's entrance, a fancy carving atop an otherwise utilitarian pillar, a wave of a flag or a cheerleader's pompom. Flourish can also mean "growth": "With the right teacher, a child will flourish." To understand how the two meanings of flourish connect, remember that the word "flower" (spelled flour-) is hiding inside it. Flowers are used for decoration and ornamentation, but they also grow. Get it? Good for you! Imagine a cheerleader shouting out your name, flourishing her pom-poms.

Example Sentences

Glenn Whelan has no doubts he will flourish.

From BBC • Jun. 23, 2026

But what allows these ban lists to flourish is that they are being produced at scale by organizations on the grounds of: Who’s going to stop me?

From Salon • Jun. 20, 2026

Ashton also believes Saints director of rugby Phil Dowson deserves a huge amount of credit for how he has set up the team, not just tactically, but in terms of allowing it to flourish.

From BBC • Jun. 20, 2026

We have to be together because we need each other to survive, to flourish.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 18, 2026

In earlier times our mother did that, with a flourish.

From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver

Related Words

• bloom
• blossom
• boom
• develop
• do well
• expand
• multiply
• succeed
• thrive