primrose
1 Americannoun
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any plant of the genus Primula, as P. vulgaris English primrose, of Europe, having yellow flowers, or P. sinensis Chinese primrose, of China, having flowers in a variety of colors.
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pale yellow.
adjective
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of or relating to the primrose.
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Also primrosed abounding in primroses.
a primrose garden.
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of a pale yellow.
noun
noun
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any of various temperate primulaceous plants of the genus Primula, esp P. vulgaris of Europe, which has pale yellow flowers
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short for evening primrose
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Also called: primrose yellow. a light to moderate yellow, sometimes with a greenish tinge
adjective
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of, relating to, or abounding in primroses
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of the colour primrose
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pleasant or gay
Etymology
Origin of primrose
1375–1425; late Middle English primerose < Medieval Latin prīma rosa first rose
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.
"You can't argue with a primrose, they're absolutely glorious... red campions will flower all year round, and they are just so beneficial to all sorts of insects and wildlife," she said.
From BBC • Apr. 3, 2026
Sand verbena, desert sunflowers and desert primrose recently dazzled onlookers along Henderson Canyon Road in Borrego Springs, an area famed for wildflowers in San Diego County.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 5, 2024
At field sites in eastern Washington, the researchers collected scent samples from pale evening primrose flowers.
From Science Daily • Feb. 8, 2024
Compounds called nitrate radicals, which can be abundant in nighttime urban air, severely degrade the scent emitted by the pale evening primrose, reducing visits from pollinating hawk moths, researchers reported in Science on Thursday.
From New York Times • Feb. 8, 2024
I start a small fire in the outdoor fireplace, wrap the primrose and artichoke in maple leaves, and clip some young shoots of a pokeweed.
From "On the Far Side of the Mountain" by Jean Craighead George
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
