primrose

[ prim-rohz ]
See synonyms for primrose on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. any plant of the genus Primula, as P. vulgaris(English primrose ), of Europe, having yellow flowers, or P. sinensis(Chinese primrose ), of China, having flowers in a variety of colors.: Compare primrose family.

  1. pale yellow.

adjective
  1. of or relating to the primrose.

  2. Also primrosed . abounding in primroses: a primrose garden.

  1. of a pale yellow.

Origin of primrose

1
1375–1425; late Middle English primerose<Medieval Latin prīma rosa first rose

Words Nearby primrose

Other definitions for Primrose (2 of 2)

Primrose
[ prim-rohz ]

noun
  1. Archibald Philip, 5th Earl of Rosebery. Rosebery, Archibald Philip Primrose, 5th Earl of.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use primrose in a sentence

  • Zutant has since stepped back from Barkada day-to-day in order to dedicate time to primrose.

  • But he put such thoughts from him—he had made his choice long ago, and it was not the primrose-path.

    Love's Pilgrimage | Upton Sinclair
  • But the third sign—the first primrose and violet—was always the happiest, as well as quite the earliest.

    Eric, or Little by Little | Frederic W. Farrar
  • His hair was a little less primrose coloured than it had been (pomatum does darken hair a little), but his eyes had not altered.

    Mushroom Town | Oliver Onions
  • The names of the plant are a puzzle; botanically it is a primrose, but it is never so called.

British Dictionary definitions for primrose

primrose

/ (ˈprɪmˌrəʊz) /


noun
  1. any of various temperate primulaceous plants of the genus Primula, esp P. vulgaris of Europe, which has pale yellow flowers

  1. Also called: primrose yellow a light to moderate yellow, sometimes with a greenish tinge

adjective
  1. of, relating to, or abounding in primroses

  2. of the colour primrose

  1. pleasant or gay

Origin of primrose

1
C15: from Old French primerose, from Medieval Latin prīma rosa first rose

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