foliage
[foh-lee-ij]
- the leaves of a plant, collectively; leafage.
- leaves in general.
- the representation of leaves, flowers, and branches in painting, architectural ornament, etc.
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Origin of foliage
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for foliage
Contemporary Examples
Bonnett remembers that as a kid in London, he and his brother would construct little hideouts under the foliage.
Discovering Underground Labyrinths, Remote Cities, and More of the World’s Lost PlacesNina Strochlic
July 8, 2014
A silverback is munching contently and endlessly on foliage.
Why should certain chords in music make me think of the brown and golden tints of autumn foliage?
Read ‘The King in Yellow,’ the ‘True Detective’ Reference That’s the Key to the ShowRobert W. Chambers
February 20, 2014
The route is dense with foliage, all splashed in vivid hues of burgundy, gold, and amber.
Of course, the central conundrum of this painting is the massive area given over to the foliage at its center.
Historical Examples
Never is the city so lovely as in this month of May, when all the trees are in the fullness of their foliage.
Ballads of a BohemianRobert W. Service
No breath of air stirred the foliage or the bending rushes in the swale.
In the ValleyHarold Frederic
Autumn had begun to tinge the foliage on the banks of Winandermere.
Night and Morning, CompleteEdward Bulwer-Lytton
The land was seamed and scarred, the colors of the foliage somber.
The foliage is beautiful, showing a sheen like changeable silk.
The Mayflower, January, 1905Various
foliage
- the green leaves of a plant
- sprays of leaves used for decoration
- an ornamental leaflike design
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Word Origin
C15: from Old French fuellage, from fuelle leaf; influenced in form by Latin folium
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for foliage
n.
mid-15c., from Middle French feuillage, from Old French feuille "leaf" (see foil (n.)). The form has altered by influence of Latin folium.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper