1.
[syn: wallflower, Cheiranthus cheiri, Erysimum cheiri]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Gillyflower \Gil"ly*flow`er\, n. [OE. gilofre, gilofer, clove,
OF. girofre, girofle, F. girofle: cf. F. girofl['e]e
gillyflower, fr. girofle, Gr. ? clove tree; ? nut + ? leaf,
akin to E. foliage. Cf. Caryophyllus, July-flower.]
[Written also gilliflower.] (Bot.)
1. A name given by old writers to the clove pink (Dianthus
Caryophyllus) but now to the common stock (Matthiola
incana), a cruciferous plant with showy and fragrant
blossoms, usually purplish, but often pink or white.
[1913 Webster]
2. A kind of apple, of a roundish conical shape, purplish red
color, and having a large core.
Clove gillyflower, the clove pink.
Marsh gillyflower, the ragged robin (Lychnis
Flos-cuculi).
Queen's gillyflower, or Winter gillyflower, damewort.
Sea gillyflower, the thrift (Armeria vulgaris).
Wall gillyflower, the wallflower (Cheiranthus Cheiri).
Water gillyflower, the water violet.
[1913 Webster]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Wallflower \Wall"flow`er\, n.
1. (Bot.) A perennial, cruciferous plant (Cheiranthus
Cheiri), with sweet-scented flowers varying in color from
yellow to orange and deep red. In Europe it very common on
old walls.
[1913 Webster]
Note: The name is sometimes extended to other species of
Cheiranthus and of the related genus Erysimum,
especially the American Western wallflower (Erysimum
asperum), a biennial herb with orange-yellow flowers.
[1913 Webster]
2. A lady at a ball, who, either from choice, or because not
asked to dance, remains a spectator. [Colloq.]
[1913 Webster]
3. (Bot.) In Australia, the desert poison bush (Gastrolobium
grandiflorum); -- called also native wallflower.
[Webster 1913 Suppl.]
WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):
Cheiranthus cheiri
n 1: perennial of southern Europe having clusters of fragrant
flowers of all colors especially yellow and orange; often
naturalized on old walls or cliffs; sometimes placed in
genus Erysimum [syn: wallflower, Cheiranthus cheiri,
Erysimum cheiri]