peony

[ pee-uh-nee ]

noun,plural pe·o·nies.
  1. any of various plants or shrubs of the genus Paeonia, having large, showy flowers, as the widely cultivated species P. lactiflora: the state flower of Indiana.

Origin of peony

1
before 1000; Middle English <Late Latin peōnia,Latin paeōnia<Greek paiōnía peony, akin to Paiā́npaean; replacing Middle English pione<Anglo-French <Old French peone<Latin; replacing Old English peonie<Late Latin, Latin, as above

Words Nearby peony

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How to use peony in a sentence

  • They saw a band of silent maidens who stood in a wilderness of blossoming peony flowers, that grew to the waters edge.

    Japanese Fairy Tales | Grace James
  • All the peony bed was tossed about like a troubled sea, and the pink and white petals flew like foam.

    Japanese Fairy Tales | Grace James
  • I have in mind a woman who, some years ago, invested in a rare variety of peony.

    Amateur Gardencraft | Eben E. Rexford
  • I was not going to be a peony flaunting among thrifty modest vetches.

    The Late Miss Hollingford | Rosa Mulholland

British Dictionary definitions for peony

peony

paeony

/ (ˈpiːənɪ) /


nounplural -nies
  1. any of various ranunculaceous shrubs and plants of the genus Paeonia, of Eurasia and North America, having large pink, red, white, or yellow flowers

  2. the flower of any of these plants

Origin of peony

1
Old English peonie, from Latin paeōnia, from Greek paiōnia; related to paiōnios healing, from paiōn physician

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012