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Definition of Pansies - 3 dictionary results
Pansies
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pan⋅sy

  [pan-zee]
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–noun, plural -sies.
1. a violet, Viola tricolor hortensis, cultivated in many varieties, having richly and variously colored flowers.
2. the flower of this plant.
3. Slang: Disparaging and Offensive.
a. a male homosexual.
b. a weak, effeminate, and often cowardly man.
Origin:
1490–1500; 1930–35 for def. 3; < MF pensée pansy, lit., thought, n. use of fem. of ptp. of penser to think < L pēnsāre to weigh, consider. See pensive
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Pansies
Great selection of perennials. Fast Shipping & Quality Guarantee.
Burpee.com/Annuals
Save On Pansy Plants
Grow Pansies For Less - $20 Off Now At Michigan Bulb.
www.MichiganBulb.com
pan·sy   (pān'zē)   
n.   pl. pan·sies

  1. Any of various plants of the genera Achimenes or Viola, especially V. tricolor or its hybrids, having flowers with velvety petals of various colors.

  2. A deep to strong violet.

  3. Offensive Slang

    1. Used as a disparaging term for a man or boy who is considered effeminate.

    2. Used as a disparaging term for a homosexual man.


[Middle English pancy, from Old French pensee, thought, remembrance, pansy, from feminine past participle of penser, to think; see pensive.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

pansy 
c.1450, from M.Fr. pensée "a pansy," lit. "thought, remembrance," from fem. pp. of penser "to think," from L. pensare "consider," freq. of pendere "to weigh" (see pensive). So called because it was regarded as a symbol of thought or remembrance. Meaning "effeminate homosexual man" is first recorded 1929.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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