flower child

American  

[flou-er chahyld] / ˈflaʊ ər ˌtʃaɪld /

noun

plural

flower children

1. (in the 1960s and 1970s) a young person, especially a hippie, rejecting conventional society and advocating love, peace, and simple, idealistic values.

---

Etymology

Origin of flower child

An Americanism dating back to 1965–70; from the conventional image of such people as carrying and distributing flowers

Example Sentences

Strong, best known as the feckless media heir of Succession, plays Jerry Rubin as a perpetually half-stoned flower child, a naïve Harpo to Hoffman’s smartass Groucho.

From Slate • Oct. 14, 2020

Some early models had a flower vase, typically mounted on the dashboard as the perfect flower child accessory.

From Washington Times • Sep. 19, 2018

The New Zealand native grew up as a flower child nursed on classic rock and protest songs; Filler strums her guitar and says, “Remember this one?” as she leads brief singalongs.

From Washington Post • Apr. 17, 2018

The rebellious flower child sensibility that informed these adventures was the spur for “Family Ties,” which captured the culture clash between parents of the hippie generation and children growing up during the Reagan administration.

From New York Times • Jun. 24, 2013

That part I remember like it was yesterday—this little flower child, who barely knew how a doorknob worked, suddenly dropped in the middle of a society several centuries ahead of the one she’d just left.

From "Schooled" by Gordon Korman