Home › Words › F › floweryflowery/ˈflaʊəɹi/flowery means pertaining to or characteristic of flowers.flowery is pronounced /ˈflaʊəɹi/.EtymologyFrom Middle English floury, equivalent to flower + -y (adjectival suffix). Piecewise doublet of floury.adjPertaining to or characteristic of flowers.Decorated with or abundant in flowers.e.g.“At last she reached a flowery knoll, at whose feet ran a little burn, shaded with woodbine and wild roses; and there she sat down, burying her face in her hands.” — 1879, William Henderson, Notes on the folk-lore of the northern counties of England and the borders:Of a speech or piece of writing: overly complicated or elaborate; with grandiloquent expressions; marked by rhetorical elegance.Melodramatic, overexaggerated.e.g.“Although flowery actions are used in the plays of the 1890s, waving arms, wringing hands, and pleading with outstretched arms would be unsuitable in plays about modern life.” — 1972, Miriam A[nna] Franklin, “Use of Hands and Feet”, in Rehearsal: The Principles and Practice of Acting for the Stage, Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, →ISBN, part II (Sharpening Theater ToolnounSomeone or something considered flowery.; A flowery person.e.g.“Now the revolutionaries-the Commies, Ban the Bomb floweries, Hippies, Wierdies with Beardies, Aldermaston Marchers, IRA, Anarchists- are in the driving seat.” — 2004 January 13, DaveK, “All We have To Do To Lose Our Freedom Is Nothing.”, in uk.legal (Usenet), archived from the original on 17 Aug 2025:Someone or something considered flowery.; A flowery phrase or statement.Someone or something considered flowery.; A flowery decoration.A place where flowers grow.e.g.“Poppies make very showy floweries and should be planted lightly in the spots where they are intended to be grown.” — 1914 April, Grasmere [pseudonym], “April Days on Canada’s Farms”, in Farmer’s Magazine, Toronto, Ont.: Maclean Publishing Company, →OCLC, page 85, column 1:Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).Words closest in meaningBy meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.floral 84% match — Of, pertaining to, or connected with flowers. vs flowery →florate 79% match — Of, pertaining to, or decorated with flowers; floral. vs flowery →florally 79% match — In a floral way; with flowers or something that suggests them. vs flowery →flowerily 76% match — In a flowery way. vs flowery →floweriness 73% match — The quality of being flowery. vs flowery →floreated 73% match — Decorated with floral ornamentation. vs flowery →flowerness 71% match — The quality of being a flower. vs flowery →floriferous 70% match — That bears flowers (especially lots of flowers). vs flowery →