freesia

[ free-zhee-uh, -zee-uh, -zhuh ]

/ ˈfri ʒi ə, -zi ə, -ʒə /

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noun

any of several plants belonging to the genus Freesia, of the iris family, native to southern Africa, having fragrant white, yellow, or sometimes rose-colored, tubular flowers.

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Origin of freesia

1880–85; <New Latin; named after E. M. Fries (1794–1878), Swedish botanist; see -ia

Words nearby freesia

free running, free safety, free school, free-select, free sheet, freesia, free silver, free skate, free skating, free socage, free soil

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use freesia in a sentence

We have had our tea and the sunlight slants in over the white freesia and white hyacinths.
Tante|Anne Douglas Sedgwick
The freesia and the oxalis are of the "Cape" group of bulbs, and when started in the fall should blossom in four or five months.
Gardening for Little Girls|Olive Hyde Foster
One of them is called freesia (Fig. 371) and if I could have but one kind of bulb to flower in the winter, I should choose this.
Cornell Nature-Study Leaflets|Various
On each side there is a hyacinth just starting and in front a little freesia in bloom.
Cornell Nature-Study Leaflets|Various

British Dictionary definitions for freesia

freesia

/ (ˈfriːzɪə, ˈfriːʒə) /

noun

any iridaceous plant of the genus Freesia, of southern Africa, cultivated for their white, yellow, or pink tubular fragrant flowers

Word Origin for freesia

C19: New Latin, named after F. H. T. Freese (died 1876), German physician

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