One of the often brightly colored parts of a flower surrounding the reproductive organs. Petals are attached to the receptacle underneath the carpels and stamens and may be separate or joined at their bases. As a group, the petals are called the corolla.
See more at flower
1695–1705; < New Latin petalum petal, Latin: metal plate < Greek pétalon a thin plate, leaf, noun use of neuter of pétalos spread out, akin to petannýnai to be open, Latin patēre to stand open ( see patent)
< New Latin -pet ( us ) seeking, derivative of Latin petere to seek + -al 1
A petal is a part of a flower. Most flowers have a ring of brightly colored petals surrounding the center part of the blossom. Petal comes from the Greek word petalon, meaning "leaf, thin plate." A petal is the lovely colorful leaf-like ring around the center of the flower, a thin plate for a fairy. The petals make up a flower’s corolla, surrounding the center. You can rip them off one by one as you say, “She loves me, she loves me not” until the last petal is picked. She loves me!
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Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Floating like a flower petal in the spring breeze.
From Salon ● Feb. 17, 2026
"Each piece of fabric, each petal, is made from different material. It was top-stitched to give the impression of veining," she said.
From Barron's ● Feb. 12, 2026
Remarkably, when the researchers removed chromatin loops, progenitor cells swiftly converted round nuclear shapes into flower petal arrangements like those found in neutrophils.
From Science Daily ● Feb. 14, 2024
One petal became four, and then it became a mess.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 24, 2023
Each square had a plain white background, but in the center was a pinwheel-shaped flower, every petal a different colored fabric.
From "Hope Springs" by Jaime Berry
They have experimented with juice from jagua, a fruit found in Central and South America, and petals from the butterfly pea flower in Southeast Asia.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 18, 2026
Patni commemorated Akash with a framed photograph and a life-size cutout, decorated with flowers and surrounded by scattered rose petals and lit lamps.
From Barron's ● Jun. 12, 2026
The one that appears alongside onion petals, Monte Cristos and a molten chocolate lava cake that arrives under a small weather system of powdered sugar.
From Salon ● Apr. 7, 2026
In 2016, President Obama and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe scattered petals together on the waters of Pearl Harbor to honor the more than 2,400 killed in the attack.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 19, 2026
I could smell the flowers across the room, even from their pressed petals.
From "City of the Plague God" by Sarwat Chadda
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.
