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Synonyms

periwinkle

1 American  
[per-i-wing-kuhl] / ˈpɛr ɪˌwɪŋ kəl /

noun

  1. any of various marine gastropods or sea snails, especially Littorina littorea, used for food in Europe.

  2. the shell of any of these animals.

periwinkle 2 American  
[per-i-wing-kuhl] / ˈpɛr ɪˌwɪŋ kəl /

noun

  1. Also called myrtle.  a trailing plant, Vinca minor, of the dogbane family, having glossy, evergreen foliage and usually blue-violet flowers.

  2. any of several similar plants of the genus Vinca or Catharanthus.

  3. a blue-violet color.

periwinkle 1 British  
/ ˈpɛrɪˌwɪŋkəl /

noun

  1. Also called (US): creeping myrtle.   trailing myrtle.  any of several Eurasian apocynaceous evergreen plants of the genus Vinca, such as V. minor ( lesser periwinkle ) and V. major ( greater periwinkle ), having trailing stems and blue flowers

    1. a light purplish-blue colour

    2. ( as adjective )

      a periwinkle coat
"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
periwinkle 2 British  
/ ˈpɛrɪˌwɪŋkəl /

noun

  1. Often shortened to: winkle.  any of various edible marine gastropods of the genus Littorina, esp L. littorea, having a spirally coiled shell

"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

Other Word Forms

  • periwinkled adjective

Etymology

Origin of periwinkle1

1520–30; perhaps reflecting (through assimilation to periwinkle 2 ) Old English pīnewincle, equivalent to pīne (from Latin pīna from Greek pínē, pîna, a kind of mollusk) + -wincel “shellfish” (occurring only in compounds), cognate with dialectal Danish vinkel “snail shell”

Origin of periwinkle2

before 1000; earlier pervinkle, perwinkle, alteration ( -le ) of Middle English perwinke, pervinke, from Anglo-French pervenke ( Old French pervenche ,) from Late Latin pervinca, Latin vi(n)capervi(n)ca; compare Old English peruince, Middle High German ber(e)winke from Late Latin pervinca

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

She cited aspirin drawing on formulations using willow tree bark, contraceptive pills developed from yam plant roots and child cancer treatments based on Madagascar's rosy periwinkle flower.

From Barron's • Dec. 17, 2025

She said the rivers and ponds used to brim with all kinds of animals and fish, particularly periwinkle.

From BBC • Feb. 11, 2025

At the Center for Natural Lands Management’s Violet Prairie native seed farm in Thurston County, row after row of periwinkle, yellow and pink flowers stretch across 5 acres.

From Seattle Times • Aug. 18, 2023

Expect periwinkle skies, green warp pipes and squeaky-voiced, mushroom-headed characters.

From New York Times • Apr. 7, 2023

Hazy blue mountains cut sharp lines into the periwinkle sky.

From "I Can Make This Promise" by Christine Day

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.