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flourishing - 3 dictionary results

flour⋅ish⋅ing

  [flur-i-shing, fluhr-]
Use flourishing in a Sentence
–adjective
growing vigorously; thriving; prosperous: a flourishing little business.
Origin:
1250–1300; ME; see flourish, -ing 2

Related forms:
flour⋅ish⋅ing⋅ly, adverb

flour⋅ish

  [flur-ish, fluhr-]
–verb (used without object)
1. to be in a vigorous state; thrive: a period in which art flourished.
2. to be in its or in one's prime; be at the height of fame, excellence, influence, etc.
3. to be successful; prosper.
4. to grow luxuriantly, or thrive in growth, as a plant.
5. to make dramatic, sweeping gestures: Flourish more when you act out the king's great death scene.
6. to add embellishments and ornamental lines to writing, letters, etc.
7. to sound a trumpet call or fanfare.
–verb (used with object)
8. to brandish dramatically; gesticulate with: a conductor flourishing his baton for the crescendo.
9. to decorate or embellish (writing, a page of script, etc.) with sweeping or fanciful curves or lines.
–noun
10. an act or instance of brandishing.
11. an ostentatious display.
12. a decoration or embellishment, esp. in writing: He added a few flourishes to his signature.
13. Rhetoric. a parade of fine language; an expression used merely for effect.
14. a trumpet call or fanfare.
15. a condition or period of thriving: in full flourish.
Origin:
1250–1300; ME florisshen < MF floriss-, long s. of florir ≪ L flōrēre to bloom, deriv. of flōs flower

Related forms:
flour⋅ish⋅er, noun

Synonyms:
1. grow, increase. See succeed. 9. ornament. 12. ornament, adornment.

Antonyms:
1. fade, decline.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To flourishing
flour·ish   (flûr'ĭsh, flŭr'-)   
v.   flour·ished, flour·ish·ing, flour·ish·es

v.   intr.
  1. To grow well or luxuriantly; thrive: The crops flourished in the rich soil.
  2. To do or fare well; prosper: "No village on the railroad failed to flourish" (John Kenneth Galbraith).
  3. To be in a period of highest productivity, excellence, or influence: a poet who flourished in the tenth century.
  4. To make bold, sweeping movements: The banner flourished in the wind.
v.   tr.
To wield, wave, or exhibit dramatically.
n.  
  1. A dramatic or stylish movement, as of waving or brandishing: "A few ... musicians embellish their performance with a flourish of the fingers" (Frederick D. Bennett).
  2. An embellishment or ornamentation: a signature with a distinctive flourish.
  3. An ostentatious act or gesture: a flourish of generosity.
  4. Music A showy or ceremonious passage, such as a fanfare.

[Middle English florishen, from Old French florir, floriss-, from Vulgar Latin *flōrīre, from Latin flōrēre, to bloom, from flōs, flōr-, flower; see bhel-3 in Indo-European roots.]
flour'ish·er n.
Synonyms: These verbs mean to swing back and forth boldly and dramatically: flourished her newly signed contract; brandish a sword; waving a baton.
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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