hibiscus

[ hahy-bis-kuh s, hi- ]

/ haɪˈbɪs kəs, hɪ- /

noun, plural hi·bis·cus·es.

Also called China rose. a woody plant, Hibiscus rosa-sinensis, of the mallow family, having large, showy flowers: the state flower of Hawaii.

any of numerous other plants, shrubs, or trees of the genus Hibiscus, characterized by lobate or dentate leaves and usually profusely blooming flowers.

Nearby words

Origin of hibiscus

1700–10; < New Latin, Latin < Greek hibískos mallow

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for hibiscus

To accompany breakfast or lunch, there's hibiscus lavender tea or locally roasted Bumper Crop coffee.
Spaghetti for Breakfast?! Not So Crazy at This Idaho Farm Café|Jane & Michael Stern|August 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Drink: Agua Fresca, especially Flor de Jamaica, hibiscus flower.
Nine Amazing Places To Skinny Dip Around The World|Erin Cunningham|September 21, 2013|DAILY BEAST
In the Pacific Isles it is very fine and strong, from Hibiscus tiliaceus.
The Sailor's Word-Book|William Henry Smyth
Hibiscus Trionum L. Seed brown, the surface dotted with numerous, ragged, light-colored pimples.
Seeds of Michigan Weeds|W. J. (William James) Beal

Hibiscus flowers or delicate ferns were dipped in these colors and impressed on the tapas in elegant designs.
White Shadows in the South Seas|Frederick O'Brien
Of fibres the most important are cotton, Deccan hemp (Hibiscus cannabinus), and sunn or tag (Crotalaria juncea).
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Slice 2|Various
The hibiscus shall grow, the coral shall spread, and man shall cease.
White Shadows in the South Seas|Frederick O'Brien

British Dictionary definitions for hibiscus

hibiscus

/ (haɪˈbɪskəs) /

noun plural -cuses

any plant of the chiefly tropical and subtropical malvaceous genus Hibiscus, esp H. rosa-sinensis, cultivated for its large brightly coloured flowers

Word Origin for hibiscus

C18: from Latin, from Greek hibiskos marsh mallow

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

Word Origin and History for hibiscus

hibiscus

1706, from Latin hibiscum, later hibiscus, "marshmallow plant," of unknown origin, perhaps from Gaulish.