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cowslip

American  
[kou-slip] / ˈkaʊ slɪp /

noun

  1. an English primrose, Primula veris, having fragrant yellow flowers.

  2. the marsh marigold.

  3. shooting star.

  4. Virginia cowslip.


cowslip British  
/ ˈkaʊˌslɪp /

noun

  1. Also called: paigle.  a primrose, Primula veris, native to temperate regions of the Old World, having fragrant yellow flowers

  2. another name for marsh marigold

"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

Etymology

Origin of cowslip

before 1000; Middle English cowslyppe, Old English cūslyppe, equivalent to cow 1 + slyppe, slypa slime; see slip 3

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Both the common primrose and the related cowslip drew the attention of Charles Darwin.

From Washington Post • Mar. 16, 2011

Three Princetonians who overlooked something as rare as a cowslip from Mars.

From Time Magazine Archive

In Huddersfield the local N.F.H. chairman, Mrs. Neil Sykes, advised housewives to make their salads of nettle tops, primrose and cowslip leaves, dandelions and wood sorrel.

From Time Magazine Archive

There are other royal rides for those who like to look an English cowslip in the eye or find out for them selves that Mussolini did indeed make Italy's trains run on time.

From Time Magazine Archive

“It’s the same all the time. ‘These are my claws, so this is my cowslip.’

From "Watership Down: A Novel" by Richard Adams