rosella

[roh-zel-uh]

noun

any of several large, colorful parakeets of the genus Platycercus, of Australia.

Origin of rosella

First recorded in 1820–30; alteration of Rosehill, district in southeast Australia

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

Examples from the Web for rosella

Historical Examples of rosella

He was as new as an overnight daisy, and as destructible in Rosella's hands.
The Spinner's Book of Fiction
Various
And then it was, and thus it was, that Rosella took her resolve.
The Spinner's Book of Fiction
Various
But no stress of weather could have kept Rosella at home that evening.
The Spinner's Book of Fiction
Various
Rosella did not answer when Trevor ceased speaking, and there was a long silence.
The Spinner's Book of Fiction
Various
Rosella said she did not know, for he had made her promise not to try to find out who he was.
Italian Popular Tales
Thomas Frederick Crane

British Dictionary definitions for rosella

rosella

noun

any of various Australian parrots of the genus Platycercus, such as P. elegans (crimson rosella), often kept as cage birds

Word Origin for rosella

C19: probably alteration of Rose-hiller, after Rose Hill, Parramatta, near Sydney

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