gardenia
Americannoun
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any evergreen tree or shrub belonging to the genus Gardenia, of the madder family, native to the warmer parts of the Eastern Hemisphere, cultivated for its usually large, fragrant white flowers.
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the flower of any of these plants.
noun
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any evergreen shrub or tree of the Old World tropical rubiaceous genus Gardenia, cultivated for their large fragrant waxlike typically white flowers
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the flower of any of these shrubs
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of gardenia
< New Latin (1760), after Alexander Garden (1730–91), American physician; see -ia
Vocabulary lists containing gardenia
Some Obscure Eponyms
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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:
The FDA is instead encouraging the use of so-called natural food dyes such as gardenia blue and calcium phosphate.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 22, 2025
A much larger 2016 fire in the Waianae mountains on the other side of Oahu took out one of the last remaining populations of a rare tree gardenia, said Gon.
From Seattle Times ● Nov. 11, 2023
Yield makes minimalist citronella candles and incense sticks, lightly fragranced with gardenia, eucalyptus and citronella.
From Washington Times ● Jun. 19, 2023
And a genipin-derived blue from gardenia fruits that has long been used in parts of Asia could soon enter the U.S. and international markets, too.
From Science Magazine ● Jun. 14, 2023
Then it was she who carried the gardenia smell.
From "Sula" by Toni Morrison
Coca-Cola is a perfect fertilizer for gardenias, azaleas and grass.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 7, 2023
His specialty is imaging up a landscape that utilizes pebbles and rocks, trees that are more natural, with lights illuminating them at night, and flowers like gardenias that perfume the entrance to a home.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 15, 2023
Like everything else, they were different this year — red gardenias instead of roses.
From Washington Post ● May 2, 2020
Tribute to Mom In Ms. Walradt’s bridal bouquet were gardenias, which were her mother’s favorite flowers.
From New York Times ● Mar. 29, 2019
The funeral home smelled of old hardwood, lemon furniture polish, and white lilies and gardenias.
From "The Serpent King" by Jeff Zentner
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.
