tu·lip
(to͞o′lĭp, tyo͞o′-)n.
1. Any of several bulbous plants of the genus Tulipa of the lily family, native chiefly to Asia and widely cultivated for their showy, variously colored, cup-shaped flowers.
2. The flower of any of these plants.
[French tulipe, alteration of tulipan, from Ottoman Turkish tülbend, piece of muslin used as a headscarf or head covering, from earlier dülbend; see turban.]
Word History: The word tulip, like the cultivated tulip plant itself, has its origins in the Middle East. The tulip figures frequently in Persian verse, where its red color evokes the blood of martyrs and the fire of love, and in Turkey, tulips are associated with the delicate refinement and luxury that characterized the Ottoman Empire at the height of its power. Western European visitors to the Ottoman Empire in the 1500s were astonished by the beautiful expanses of tulips cultivated by the sultans. Tulips were brought to western Europe from the Ottoman Empire sometime in the same century, and the English word tulip ultimately stems from Ottoman Turkish tülbend (modern Turkish tülbent), the word for a piece of muslin used as a headscarf or head covering. The Turkish word for a turban seems to have been used for the flower in western European languages because a fully opened tulip was thought to resemble a turban, the typical headwear of men in the land where tulips originated. (The actual Turkish word for a tulip is lale, from Persian lâle.) Turkish tülbend, used as a name for the tulip, was borrowed into many languages of western Europe as the popularity of the tulip spread, and by the late 1500s it had reached English, in which it was at first variously spelled tulipa, tulipant, and tulip. The English word turban, also first recorded in English in the 1500s, can be traced to Ottoman Turkish tülbend, too.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
tulip
(ˈtjuːlɪp)n
1. (Plants) any spring-blooming liliaceous plant of the temperate Eurasian genus Tulipa, having tapering bulbs, long broad pointed leaves, and single showy bell-shaped flowers
2. (Plants) the flower or bulb of any of these plants
[C17: from New Latin tulipa, from Turkish tülbend turban, which the opened bloom was thought to resemble]
ˈtulip-ˌlike adj
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
tu•lip
(ˈtu lɪp, ˈtyu-)n.
1. any of various plants belonging to the genus Tulipa, of the lily family, having lance-shaped leaves and large, showy, cup-shaped or bell-shaped flowers in a variety of colors.
2. a flower or bulb of such a plant.
[1570–80; earlier tulipa < New Latin, appar. back formation from Italian tulipano (taken as adj.) < Turkish tülbent turban (from a fancied likeness); see turban]
tu′lip•like`, adj.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
| Noun | 1. |  tulip - any of numerous perennial bulbous herbs having linear or broadly lanceolate leaves and usually a single showy flowerliliaceous plant - plant growing from a bulb or corm or rhizome or tuber genus Tulipa, Tulipa - Eurasian perennial bulbous herbs candlestick tulip, lady tulip, Tulipa clusiana - Eurasian tulip with small flowers blotched at the base Tulipa gesneriana - tall late blooming tulip cottage tulip - any of several long-stemmed tulips that flower in May; have egg-shaped variously colored flowers Darwin tulip - any of several very tall, late blooming tulips bearing large squarish flowers on sturdy stems |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
Translations
تُولِيبخُزامى، زَنْبَق
tulipán
tulipan
لاله
tulppaani
tulipanlala
tulipán
tulip
túlípani
チューリップ
튤립
tulpė
tulpe
tulipán
tulipan
lalatulipanлалатулипан
tulpan
ดอกทิวลิป
lalelâle
cây uất kim hương
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005
tulip
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995
tulip
(ˈtjuːlip) noun a kind of plant with brightly-coloured cup-shaped flowers, grown from a bulb.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.
tulip
→ تُولِيب tulipán tulipan Tulpe τουλίπα tulipán tulppaani tulipe tulipan tulipano チューリップ 튤립 tulp tulipan tulipan tulipa тюльпан tulpan ดอกทิวลิป lale cây uất kim hương 郁金香Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009