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primrose

Pronunciation: /ˈprɪmrəʊz/
Translate primrose | into French | into German | into Italian | into Spanish
Definition of primrose

noun

  • a European plant of woodland and hedgerows, which produces pale yellow flowers in the early spring.
    • Primula vulgaris, family Primulaceae (the primrose family). This family also includes the cowslip, pimpernels, and cyclamens
  • (also primrose yellow) [mass noun] a pale yellow colour: old-fashioned tones of primrose and lavender [as modifier]:primrose-yellow paintwork

Phrases

primrose path

the pursuit of pleasure, especially when it is seen to bring disastrous consequences:blithely unaware of his doom, he continued down his primrose path
[with allusion to Shakespeare's Hamlet i. iii. 50]

Origin:

late Middle English: compare with Old French primerose and medieval Latin prima rosa, literally 'first rose'

primrose in other Oxford dictionaries

Definition of primrose in the US English dictionary

Nearby words

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