gillyflower

See also: gilly-flower

English

Alternative forms

• gilliflower, gilli-flower, gilly-flower, July-flower, gilliver, gilloflower

Etymology

By folk etymology (with influence from flower) from French girofle, gilofre, from Late Latin caryophyllum, from Ancient Greek καρυόφυλλον (karuóphullon, “dried flower buds of the clove tree”).

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈdʒɪl.ɪˌflaʊə/
• (US) IPA^(key): /ˈd͡ʒɪl.iˌflaʊɚ/, /ˈɡɪl.iˌflaʊɚ/

Noun

gillyflower (plural gillyflowers)

1. Clove pink.
2. (by extension) Any clove-scented flower.
3. Any of several species of wallflower.
4. A variety of purplish-red apple with a roundish conical shape and a large core.
5. (heraldry) A stylized representation of a carnation blossom, usually red, and shown with or without a slip and leaves.

Synonyms

• (carnation): carnation, pink

Derived terms

Derived terms

• clove gillyflower
• marsh gillyflower
• Queen's gillyflower
• sea gillyflower
• stock-gillyflower
• wall gillyflower
• water gillyflower
• winter gillyflower

Translations

any clove-scented flower

variety of apple

heraldry: stylized carnation blossom

• Swedish: nejlika (sv) c

Further reading

• gilliflower on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• Michael Quinion (2004) “Gillyflower”, in Ballyhoo, Buckaroo, and Spuds: Ingenious Tales of Words and Their Origins, Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Books in association with Penguin Books, →ISBN.