Lily definition

lĭlē
lilies
See word origin
Frequency:
The flower of any of these plants.
noun
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Any of a large genus (Lilium) of perennial plants of the lily family, grown from a bulb and having typically trumpet-shaped flowers, white or colored.
noun
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Any of various plants of the genus Lilium, having variously colored, often trumpet-shaped flowers.
noun
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The flower or the bulb of any of these plants.
noun
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Any of several flowers in the genus Lilium of the family Liliaceae, which includes a great many ornamental species.
noun
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Any of several species of herbaceous flower which may or may not resemble the genus Lilium in some way, and which are not closely related to it or each other.
noun
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The end of a compass needle that should point north, traditionally often ornamented with the figure of a lily or fleur-de-lis.
noun
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(slang, derogatory) White (as a racial epithet).
adjective
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anagrams
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Yill.
anagrams
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A female given name. Popular around 1900 and currently returning to favor.
pronoun
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Any of several plants similar to the true lily, as the waterlily.
noun
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The flower of any of these plants.
noun
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The heraldic fleur-de-lis, as in the royal arms of France.
noun
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Designating a family (Liliaceae, order Liliales) of monocotyledonous, usually herbaceous, plants, including the tulips, hyacinths, onions, and asparagus.
adjective
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Like a lily, as in whiteness, delicacy, etc.
adjective
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(person, proper) A feminine name.
noun
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Any of various similar or related plants, such as the daylily or the water lily.
noun
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Other Word Forms

Noun

Singular:
lily
Plural:
lilies

Origin of lily

  • Middle English lilie from Old English from Latin līlium

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

  • Old English lilie, from Latin lÄ«lia, plural of lÄ«lium, from Ancient Greek λείριον (leírion), from Coptic (dial. Fayyumic) ϩⲗⲏⲣⲓ (hlÄ“ri), variant of ϩⲣⲏⲣⲉ (hrÄ“re), from Demotic (ḥrry), from Egyptian

    From Wiktionary

  • A nineteenth century flower name from the lily. Also a diminutive of Lilian and, sometimes, of Elizabeth.

    From Wiktionary

  • ḥrr.t (ḥereret) 'flower'. Perhaps also the root of Sanskrit हली/हलिनी (halI/halinI), both also meaning lily.

    From Wiktionary

Lily Sentence Examples

  • We bought a lily and set it in a sunny window.

  • The conventional fleur-de-lis, as Littre says, represents very imperfectly three flowers of the white lily (Lilium) joined together, the central one erect, and each of the other two curving outwards.

  • Tradition soon attributed the origin of the fleur-de-lis to Clovis, the founder of the Frankish monarchy, and explained that it represented the lily given to him by an angel at his baptism.

  • This mode of increase applies specially to bulbous plants, such as the lily and hyacinth, which produce little bulbs on the exterior round their base.

  • An order of the Lily, with a fleur-de-lis for badge, was established in the Roman states by Pope Paul III.

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Also Mentioned In

Words near lily in the Dictionary