posy

[poh-zee]

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noun, plural po·sies.

a flower, nosegay, or bouquet.

Archaic. a brief motto or the like, as one inscribed within a ring.

Origin of posy

1400–50; late Middle English; syncopated variant of poesy

Can be confusedpoesy posey posy

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for posy

flower, sentiment, bouquet, nosegay, blossom, verse, motto, corsage, boutonniere

Examples from the Web for posy

Historical Examples of posy

Her posy was sweet-smelling and good; it spoke to the heart.
Tiverton Tales
Alice Brown
Posy, among the rest, was blindfolded, and led up to the table.
Harper's Young People, October 26, 1880
Various
"Posy here'd be a good hand aboard a lightship," he observed.
Galusha the Magnificent
Joseph C. Lincoln
I presume likely it's right enough for you to play that mouth organ of yours, Posy.
Galusha the Magnificent
Joseph C. Lincoln
"A dear old lady," murmured Goneril, much more interested in her posy.
Stories By English Authors: Italy
Various

British Dictionary definitions for posy

posy

noun plural -sies

a small bunch of flowers or a single flower; nosegay

archaic a brief motto or inscription, esp one on a trinket or a ring

Word Origin for posy

C16: variant of poesy

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

Word Origin and History for posy

also posey, 1530s, "line of verse engraved on the inner surface of a ring," from poesy "poetry; a passage of poetry," which is recorded in this sense from early 15c. Meaning "flower, bouquet" first recorded 1570s, from notion of the language of flowers.