wallflower

American  

[wawl-flou-er] / ˈwɔlˌflaʊ ər /

noun

• wallflowers
  plural

1. a person who, because of shyness, unpopularity, or lack of a partner, remains at the side at a party or dance.

2. any person, organization, etc., that remains on or has been forced to the sidelines of any activity.

   The firm was a wallflower in this year's bidding for government contracts.

3. a European plant, Cheiranthus cheiri, of the mustard family, that, when growing wild on walls, cliffs, etc., has sweet-scented, usually yellow or orange flowers, but when cultivated has flowers varying in color from pale yellow to brown-red or purple.

4. any of several related plants of the genera Cheiranthus and Erysimum.

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wallflower British  

/ ˈwɔːlˌflaʊə /

noun

1. Also called: gillyflower.  a plant, Cheiranthus cheiri, of S Europe, grown for its clusters of yellow, orange, brown, red, or purple fragrant flowers and naturalized on old walls, cliffs, etc: family Brassicaceae (crucifers)

2. any of numerous other crucifers of the genera Cheiranthus and Erysimum, having orange or yellow flowers

3. informal a person who stays on the fringes of a dance or party on account of lacking a partner or being shy

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• wallflowers
  plural

Etymology

Origin of wallflower

First recorded in 1570–80; wall + flower

Explanation

A wallflower is someone who's so shy that they typically stand or sit alone rather than engage with a larger group. If you tend to be introverted and a bit awkward at parties, you might describe yourself as a wallflower. A botanist would tell you that wallflowers are actual flowers; a relative of the cabbage, wallflowers are native to southern Europe and grow tiny blossoms of various colors. Figurative wallflowers are even more varied, including introverts, people with social anxiety, and extremely reserved folks. The stereotypical wallflower stands against the wall at a party, too shy to ask someone to dance. This meaning dates back to at least 1820.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

wallflower wallflowers

And in just three minutes of exposition, Hughes and Deutch nimbly convey that Molly Ringwald’s Andie Walsh is both your conventional artsy wallflower and a singularly special young woman.

From Salon ● Feb. 28, 2026

Vanderbilt, the former SEC wallflower, just posted the first 10-win season in its history.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 24, 2025

But onscreen — especially in the close-ups Chu enjoys — there’s no spell on Earth, over or under the rainbow, that could convince me Erivo is a pigtailed wallflower.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 18, 2025

In it, Streep’s character, a fading but indomitable Hollywood actress named Madeline Ashton, is reunited with her old friend, Hawn’s wallflower novelist Helen Sharp.

From New York Times ● Nov. 30, 2024

After seeing JT’s parents, his father so angry and vicious and his mother as passive as a wallflower, my family’s little spats seemed like a child’s game.

From "The Lions of Little Rock" by Kristin Levine

Some wallflowers also have red, white or purple blooms, and the plants will reseed to grow back in the spring.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 2, 2024

"There is that through line where the characters are strong, and have agency, and aren't exactly wallflowers," Ritter said.

From Salon ● May 17, 2023

"And, you know, we're political wallflowers," he added.

From Reuters ● Nov. 16, 2022

The dance felt a bit like a prom attended only by the wallflowers and parent chaperones, but then the 40th birthday celebrants arrived and blew life into the party.

From Washington Post ● Jul. 29, 2022

In every garden wallflowers blossomed in bright color and filled the air with perfume.

From "The Door in the Wall" by Marguerite de Angeli

Related Words

• observer