flower
[ flou-er ]
/ ˈflaʊ ər /
noun
verb (used without object)
to produce flowers; blossom; come to full bloom.
to come out into full development; mature.
verb (used with object)
to cover or deck with flowers.
to decorate with a floral design.
Nearby words
flow country, flow sheet, flow-on, flowage, flowback, flowers, flower beetle, flower box, flower bud, flower bug, flower child
Origin of flower
1150–1200; Middle English flour flower, best of anything < Old French flor, flour, flur < Latin flōr- (stem of flōs). Cf. blossom
Related formsre·flow·er, verb
Can be confusedflour flower
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for flowers
British Dictionary definitions for flowers
flower
/ (ˈflaʊə) /
noun
verb
Derived Formsflower-like, adjective
Word Origin for flower
C13: from Old French flor, from Latin flōs; see blow ³
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
Medicine definitions for flowers
flowers
[ flou′ərz ]
pl.n.
A fine powder produced by condensation or sublimation of a compound.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Science definitions for flowers
flower
[ flou′ər ]
The reproductive structure of the seed-bearing plants known as angiosperms. A flower may contain up to four whorls or arrangements of parts: carpels, stamens, petals, and sepals. The female reproductive organs consist of one or more carpels. Each carpel includes an ovary, style, and stigma. A single carpel or a group of fused carpels is sometimes called a pistil. The male reproductive parts are the stamens, made up of a filament and anther. The reproductive organs may be enclosed in an inner whorl of petals and an outer whorl of sepals. Flowers first appeared over 120 million years ago and have evolved a great diversity of forms and coloration in response to the agents that pollinate them. Some flowers produce nectar to attract animal pollinators, and these flowers are often highly adapted to specific groups of pollinators. Flowers pollinated by moths, such as species of jasmine and nicotiana, are often pale and fragrant in order to be found in the evening, while those pollinated by birds, such as fuschias, are frequently red and odorless, since birds have good vision but a less developed sense of smell. Wind-pollinated flowers, such as those of oak trees or grass, are usually drab and inconspicuous. See Note at pollination.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Culture definitions for flowers
flower
The part of a plant that produces the seed. It usually contains petals, a pistil, and pollen-bearing stamens.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.