columbine

¹

[ kol-uhm-bahyn ]

noun

1. a plant, Aquilegia caerula, of the buttercup family, having showy flowers with white petals and white to blue sepals that form long, backward spurs: the state flower of Colorado.
2. any of various other plants of the genus Aquilegia, characterized by divided leaves and showy flowers of various colors.

columbine

²

[ kol-uhm-bahyn, -bin ]

adjective

1. of a dove.
2. dovelike; dove-colored.

Columbine

³

[ kol-uhm-bahyn ]

noun

1. a female character in commedia dell'arte and pantomime: sweetheart of Harlequin.
2. a female given name.

Columbine

¹

/ ˈkɒləmˌbaɪn /

noun

1. (originally) the character of a servant girl in commedia dell'arte
2. (later) the sweetheart of Harlequin in English pantomime

columbine

²

/ ˈkɒləmˌbaɪn /

noun

1. any plant of the ranunculaceous genus Aquilegia, having purple, blue, yellow, or red flowers with five spurred petals Also calledaquilegia

columbine

³

/ ˈkɒləmˌbaɪn /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or resembling a dove

Word History and Origins

Origin of columbine¹

1275–1325; Middle English < Medieval Latin columbīna ( herba ) dovelike (plant), feminine of Latin columbīnus ( columbine ² ); the inverted flower looks like a group of doves

Origin of columbine²

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin columbīnus, equivalent to columb ( a ) dove + -īnus -ine ¹

Origin of columbine³

1720–30; < Italian Columbina literally, dovelike girl; columbine ²

Word History and Origins

Origin of columbine¹

C13: from Medieval Latin columbīna herba dovelike plant, from Latin columbīnus dovelike, from the resemblance of the flower to a group of doves

Origin of columbine²

C14: from Old French colombin, from Latin columbīnus dovelike, from columba dove

Example Sentences

Officers at the school waited over an hour to enter the classrooms and confront the gunman—a decision that was “antithetical to everything we have learned over the last two decades since the Columbine massacre” in 1999, McCraw said.

From Time

The majority of mass school shootings were carried out by a lone gunman, with just two – Columbine and the 1988 shooting at Westside School in Jonesboro, Arkansas – carried out by two gunmen.

From No Straight News

If those two boys who went on a shooting rampage at Columbine had an adult who cared, they might not have “descended into hell.”

From The Daily Beast

In the eyes of the NRA, Rambo is as grave a threat to gun rights as The Fonz—or the director of Bowling for Columbine.

From The Daily Beast

Gun massacres like Newtown and Columbine can destroy communities, families, and schools.

From The Daily Beast

But school-based arrests in Pennsylvania alone went up by 300 percent since Columbine.

From The Daily Beast

“Before Columbine, juvenile crime had been coming down,” May said.

From The Daily Beast

In a kind of manifesto, the Virginia Tech killer had written about the two Columbine killers.

From The Daily Beast

Harlequin had recruited a columbine and a shepherdess, and he introduced these ladies as partners for the promised minuet.

From Project Gutenberg

As a favourite garden flower, the Columbine found its way into heraldic blazonry.

From Project Gutenberg

As a garden plant the Columbine still holds a favourite place.

From Project Gutenberg

The many species of owls, too, have p. 187not been noticed; and no mention made of the Columbine tribe.

From Project Gutenberg

But any though he is, he is as capable of devotion to his Columbine as Punchinello, and remains faithfully mated year after year.

From Project Gutenberg