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• iris
  iris

  noun

  the contractile, circular diaphragm forming the colored portion of the eye and containing a circular opening, the pupil, in its center.
• Iris
  Iris

  noun

  a female given name.

iris

¹ American  

[ahy-ris] / ˈaɪ rɪs /

noun

• irises,
  plural
• irides
  plural

1. Anatomy. the contractile, circular diaphragm forming the colored portion of the eye and containing a circular opening, the pupil, in its center.

2. Botany. any plant of the genus Iris, having showy flowers and sword-shaped leaves.

3. a flower of this plant.

4. (initial capital letter) a messenger of the gods, regarded as the goddess of the rainbow.

5. a rainbow.

6. any appearance resembling a rainbow.

7. Movies, Television. an iris-in or iris-out.

8. Optics, Photography. iris diaphragm.

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verb (used without object)

1. Movies. to begin or end a take or scene with an iris-in or iris-out, achieved by manipulation of an iris diaphragm on the camera or by editing the film.

Iris ² American  

[ahy-ris] / ˈaɪ rɪs /

noun

1. a female given name.

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Iris ¹ British  

/ ˈaɪrɪs /

noun

1. the goddess of the rainbow along which she travelled to earth as a messenger of the gods

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iris ² British  

/ ˈaɪrɪs /

noun

1. the coloured muscular diaphragm that surrounds and controls the size of the pupil

2. Also called: fleur-de-lys.  any plant of the iridaceous genus Iris, having brightly coloured flowers composed of three petals and three drooping sepals See also flag 3 orris 1 stinking iris

3. Also called: rainbow quartz.  a form of quartz that reflects light polychromatically from internal fractures

4. a rare or poetic word for rainbow

5. something resembling a rainbow; iridescence

6. short for iris diaphragm

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iris Scientific  

/ ī′rĭs /

• irises
  plural

1. The colored, muscular ring around the pupil of the eye in vertebrate animals, located between the cornea and lens. Contraction and expansion of the iris controls the size of the pupil, thereby regulating the amount of light reaching the retina.

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iris Cultural  

1. The colored membrane of the eye, surrounding the pupil, which by contracting and expanding regulates the amount of light that enters the eye.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• irides
  plural
• irises
  plural

Etymology

Origin of iris

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Latin Īris, īris, from Greek Îris, îris “rainbow, goddess of the rainbow, halo, iris flower or root, iridescent crystal”; in some senses, from New Latin, from Greek: “diaphragm of eye”

Explanation

Your iris is the colored part of your eye that surrounds the black pupil in the center. If your irises are brown, you can say you have brown eyes. The job of the iris is to determine how large or small the pupil is, depending on the amount of light available. Your iris protects your eye's retina, by controlling how much light reaches it, and helps you to see. Another kind of iris is a bright flower with long, spiky leaves. Both irises take their names from the Greek iris, "rainbow."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

iris Iris irides irises

World uses the iris for ID confirmation because it is the most unique part of a person, even more so than a fingerprint.

From BBC ● Apr. 17, 2026

IriHealth is preparing to launch, for only about $50, a small smartphone extension that would scan a user's iris.

From Barron's ● Jan. 12, 2026

And the Sam Altman-backed World project aims to scan every iris on Earth for its anonymous identification platform—if privacy concerns don’t get in the way.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 27, 2025

In theory, these iris scans offer a safe and convenient way for consumers to verify their human identity at a time when AI-powered tools can easily create fake audio and images of people.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 12, 2025

Their shade of blue is peculiar, so dark it is almost black, with a small patch of lighter blue on the left iris, right next to the corner of his eye.

From "Divergent" by Veronica Roth

"The glass beads serve a similar function to calibration weights on a scale," explains Iris Weber from the University of Münster.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 12, 2026

Times fellow Iris Kwok contributed to this report.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 7, 2026

The company is aiming to bring 14 gigawatts of capacity online by 2027 and planning to manufacture its own Iris chips.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026

His father had been in a relationship with Wendy Van Wanten, whose real name is Iris Vandenkerckhove, before he went on to marry Princess Claire in 2003.

From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026

After sixty-three days of grueling work, Iris was complete.

From "The Martian" by Andy Weir

Warner's prose duplicates the irides cent beauty of elfin life.

From Time Magazine Archive

The bill is one inch one line long from the gape, and, with the irides, is red.

From Zoological Illustrations, Volume I or Original Figures and Descriptions of New, Rare, or Interesting Animals by William Swainson

The beak is very strong, and yellowish green in colour; the irides, ruby-red, the eyelids scarlet.

From Argentine Ornithology, Volume II (of 2) A descriptive catalogue of the birds of the Argentine Republic. by W. H. (William Henry) Hudson

This bird proved to be one of the remarkably handsome pale varieties of Buteo vulgaris, the whole plumage of a warm cream-colour, slightly mottled and splashed above with dark brown; irides dark and claws white.

From Wild Spain (Espa?a agreste) Records of Sport with Rifle, Rod, and Gun, Natural History Exploration by Walter J. Buck

General plumage white; scapulars and wings black; bill and feet red; orbits naked, black; irides brown.

From British Birds in their Haunts by Rev. C. A. Johns

We can reset a password, but we can’t reset our fingerprints or our irises.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 3, 2026

Start with its resemblance to an eye that’s been knocked out of a skull — identical to a human eyeball, until it displays a carousel of irises.

From Salon ● Sep. 18, 2025

White and purple irises line the paths beneath ancient horse chestnuts in full flower.

From BBC ● May 3, 2025

A flower seller, asked about the tourist trade, irritably mimed how some outsiders would manhandle his delicate blooms — brilliant purple irises and Van Gogh-worthy sunflowers — and then walk away without buying anything.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2024

Now he was certain that her irises and the whites of her eyes spilled out until they were completely black.

From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova