lilac
Americannoun
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any of various shrubs belonging to the genus Syringa, of the olive family, as S. vulgaris, having large clusters of fragrant purple or white flowers: the state flower of New Hampshire.
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pale reddish purple.
adjective
noun
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Also called: syringa. any of various Eurasian oleaceous shrubs or small trees of the genus Syringa, esp S. vulgaris ( common lilac ) which has large sprays of purple or white fragrant flowers
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another name for goat's-rue
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a light or moderate purple colour, sometimes with a bluish or reddish tinge
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( as adjective )
a lilac carpet
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Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of lilac
First recorded in 1615–25; from obsolete French, from Spanish, from Arabic līlak, from Persian līlak, assimilated variant of nīlak “bluish,” equivalent to nīl “blue, indigo” (from Sanskrit nīla ) + -ak a suffix indicating relationship or origin
Vocabulary lists containing lilac
Non-Color Words to Use When Describing Color
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Purple
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Example Sentences
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See Examples For:
Eventually Goad made a decision: She scrapped the characteristic purple in favor of a delicate lilac named “Lilith,” picked by a committee of girls.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 16, 2026
The White House said the decor was inspired by English gardens, with the room featuring towering trees and blossoming boxes of lilac.
From BBC ● Apr. 28, 2026
Infiniti oozed glamour in a lilac sleeveless Louis Vuitton dress with a fitted bodice and a cascade of ruffles tumbling from her hip to the floor, creating a long train.
From Barron's ● Mar. 15, 2026
Once cooled, they went into crinkly cellophane bags from Party Central, each one tied with a bit of lilac curling ribbon.
From Salon ● Apr. 3, 2025
From time to time, she looks out the window, at the lilac sky of early evening, vividly tinged with two parallel stripes of pink.
From "The Namesake" by Jhumpa Lahiri
The 4-acre property, a restoration project honoring the work of famed lilac developer Hulda Klager, is chock-full of lilacs, some of which date to the late 19th century.
From Seattle Times ● May 4, 2024
She described her childhood within the island's forested expanse, making dirt-pies and chasing garter snakes next to "fragrant purple lilacs, sour grapes in vines strangling the trunks of tart green apple trees".
From BBC ● Jan. 30, 2023
This almost fluorescent purple-red beauty has aromas of berries, pomegranate and smoke embracing violets and lilacs.
From Washington Post ● Dec. 22, 2022
Red-and-white crime scene tape stretched across an entrance to Byskovy Park — named for the lilacs that used to grow there — on Kherson’s southeastern outskirts.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 18, 2022
It was her penance for having taken those lilacs in from the mailbox.
From "Typical American" by Gish Jen
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.
