an ornamental receptacle or stand for holding plants, flowers, etc.
various vegetables diced and boiled or glazed, used for garnishing meat or poultry.
an ornamental pot or trough for plants
a garnish of fresh vegetables, cooked, diced, and served around a dish of meat
1835–45; < French, feminine of jardinier gardener, equivalent to Old French jardin garden + -ier -ier 2
The word jardiniere may seem a little fancy — and in fact, it is the word for two things that are a little fancy: an ornate flowerpot or plant stand, and a colorful veggie garnish that jazzes up a meal. The term jardiniere comes from the French word for "gardener." Of course, gardeners may grow flowers, or they may grow vegetables, and a jardiniere is a way that either of those products can be showcased. As a flowerpot or plant stand, a jardiniere may be made of ceramic, metal, or wood featuring intricate designs. In the culinary world, a jardiniere adds a pop of color and flavor to an otherwise plain dish. In both cases, fancy.
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Roughly 9 percent of the time, a J was incorrectly swapped out for another letter, as when jardiniere was incorrectly spelled as gardiniere.
From Slate ● May 28, 2014
For two more rounds and part of a third, they fought without faltering through such helter-spellers as recalesce, baccivorous and jardiniere.
From Time Magazine Archive
Let me have some Man O'War en casserole" "I'll take Zev jardiniere" "Give me a steak a la Earl Sande" "Waiter!
From Time Magazine Archive
“Oh nonsense,” Greta Betchel, a petite woman who fancied herself both a nineteenth-century graveyard poet and the world’s last jardiniere supreme a la Louis XIV, replied.
From "The Milagro Beanfield War" by John Nichols
"That jardiniere happened to be imported from Nippon," remarked Miss Prettyman coldly.
From Betty Gordon at Boarding School The Treasure of Indian Chasm by Emerson, Alice B.
“It’s hospitality for the neighborhood,” he said, of adding a smoked fish platter, rigatoni with fresh and smoked salmon, and even cured herring with jardinière to the otherwise Tuscan menu.
From New York Times ● Aug. 10, 2021
The thought of him with a jardinière on a plane… That’s unexpected, I say.
From The Guardian ● Jul. 8, 2018
Other items in the auction include an unmarked Loetz Steifen und Flecken ruffled bowl, a signed La Verne Francais French cameo vase, a marked Zsolnay art pottery jardinière and a Rockwood pottery pitcher dated 1889.
From Washington Times ● Feb. 14, 2017
In its center stood a stone jardinière, now empty.
From The Key to Yesterday by Buck, Charles Neville
Romola had moved graciously across the room, where in a bronze jardinière protruded the dusty, slender necks of tall bottles.
From Peter the Brazen A Mystery Story of Modern China by Hoskins, Gayle Porter
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
