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geranium
5 dictionary results for: Geranium
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
ge·ra·ni·um       [ji-rey-nee-uhm] Pronunciation Key
–noun
1.any of numerous plants of the genus Geranium, which comprises the crane's-bills.
2.the wild geranium, G. maculatum, of eastern North America, having loose clusters of lavender flowers.
3.Also called stork's-bill. any of various plants of the allied genus Pelargonium, native to southern Africa, having showy flowers or fragrant leaves, widely cultivated in gardens and as houseplants.
4.a flower of this plant.
5.a vivid red color.

[Origin: 1540–50; < NL, for L geranion < Gk geránion name for various plants the fruit of which was thought to resemble a crane's bill, deriv. of géranos crane; akin to L grūs]
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
ge·ra·ni·um       (jə-rā'nē-əm)  Pronunciation Key 
n.  
  1. Any of various plants of the genus Geranium, having palmately divided leaves and pink or purplish flowers. Also called cranesbill.
  2. Any of various plants of the genus Pelargonium, native chiefly to southern Africa and widely cultivated for their rounded, often variegated leaves and showy clusters of red, pink, or white flowers. Also called storksbill.
  3. A strong to vivid red.


[New Latin Geranium, genus name, from Latin geranium, crane's-bill, from Greek geranion, diminutive of geranos, crane; see gerə-2 in Indo-European roots.]

Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
geranium 
1548, from L. geranium, from Gk. geranion, dim. of geranos "crane" (cognate with L. grus, Eng. crane), from supposed resemblance of seed pods to cranes' bills; the native name was also cranebill.

WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
geranium

noun
any of numerous plants of the family Geraniaceae 

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Geranium

Ge*ra"ni*um\, n. [L., fr. Gr. ?, from ? crane: cf. F. g['e]ranium. See Crane, n.]

1. (Bot.) A genus of plants having a beaklike tours or receptacle, around which the seed capsules are arranged, and membranous projections, or stipules, at the joints. Most of the species have showy flowers and a pungent odor. Called sometimes crane's-bill.

2. (Floriculture) A cultivated pelargonium.

Note: Many plants referred to the genus Geranium by the earlier botanists are now separated from it under the name of Pelargonium, which includes all the commonly cultivated "geraniums", mostly natives of South Africa.

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