sunflower
Americannoun
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sunflowers
plural
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any of various composite plants of the genus Helianthus, as H. annuus, having showy, yellow-rayed flower heads often 12 inches (30 centimeters) wide, and edible seeds that yield an oil with a wide variety of uses: the state flower of Kansas.
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Also called aster. Furniture. a conventionalized flower motif carved in the center panels of a Connecticut chest.
noun
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any of several American plants of the genus Helianthus, esp H. annuus, having very tall thick stems, large flower heads with yellow rays, and seeds used as food, esp for poultry: family Asteraceae (composites) See also Jerusalem artichoke
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the oil extracted from sunflower seeds, used as a salad oil, in the manufacture of margarine, etc
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of sunflower
First recorded in 1555–65; translation of Latin flōs sōlis “flower of the sun”
Vocabulary lists containing sunflower
Non-Color Words to Use When Describing Color
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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.
See Examples For:
Soon after Cindy’s feeder made its debut, a raccoon arrived, made himself at home on the ledge, and helped himself to some sunflower seeds.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
The drone later crashed into a sunflower field, he said.
From Barron's ● Aug. 8, 2026
Martyn said everything went "seamlessly" until they reached the gate, despite Mason, who was wearing a sunflower lanyard and had his diagnosis letter with him, shouting the word "bomb" several times.
From BBC ● May 26, 2026
To start, each box contains sunflower lecithin, which is extracted from sunflower oil, a seed oil.
From Salon ● May 23, 2026
The jewel tones shift from ocean blues to cobalts and magentas, from crimson reds to sunflower yellows.
From "The Belles" by Dhonielle Clayton
Even more surprising were the endless fields of corn, rapeseed and sunflowers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 7, 2026
And so the same peloton will be hurtling along the cobbles a couple of months before gliding through the sunflowers of a French summer.
From BBC ● Apr. 13, 2026
It’s on the same plot as our old cottage, with the same view over peaceful fields of wheat and sunflowers, but with a more-solid foundation, crack-free walls and better heating.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 22, 2026
Lupines, fiddlenecks and bush sunflowers, among other native wildflower species, are just starting to take off in the Puente Hills, particularly in Turnbull Canyon, Powder Canyon and on the Purple Sage Loop.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 17, 2026
Quang-ha hears me refer to the sunflowers in this way and laughs.
From "Counting by 7s" by Holly Goldberg Sloan
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.
