poinsettia
/ˌpɔɪnˈsɛ.t(i)ə/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.12 in modern English
12
Scrabble Score
10
Letters
4
Syllables
8
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A plant, Euphorbia pulcherrima, with rather small and insignificant flowers surrounded by large bright red leaves; native to Mexico and Central America and widely cultivated as a garden plant; widely used in Christmas floral displays.
Example Sentences
- "Masses of scarlet Poinsettias glowed bravely against the dark green background formed by broad-leafed plantains, whose great tattered leaves rustled with every gust of wind that reached them."
- "“So red,” she said of the poinsettias behind Florencia, which Jacquie didn’t even like because of how even the real ones look fake."
Etymology
After the obsolete genus name Poinsettia, named after Joel Roberts Poinsett (19th-century US minister to Mexico); equivalent to Poinsett + -ia.
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˌpɔɪnˈsɛ.t(i)ə/
- British English: /ˌpɔɪnˈsɛ.tɪə/
Inflected Forms
Synonyms
Christmas star
Mexican flame leaf
christmas flower
lobster plant
mexican flameleaf
painted leaf
euphorbia pulcherrima