: any of a genus (Tulipa) of Eurasian bulbous herbs of the lily family that have linear or broadly lanceolate leaves and are widely grown for their showy flowers
also
: the flower or bulb of a tulip
Examples of tulip in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
The general recommendation for planting bulbs is to wait for the first frost before planting your crocus, tulips, and daffodils.
—
Paul Cappiello, The Courier-Journal, 15 Nov. 2024
Expect a mid-season daffodil or tulip to bloom about two weeks after an early-season variety.
—Megan Hughes, Better Homes & Gardens, 22 Oct. 2024
The dress, in a shade of plum purple, featured an array of flowers including tulips, daffodils and honeysuckle.
—Julia Teti, WWD, 6 Aug. 2024
His set of flowers that will grace this year’s stamp release, and their denomination, will be tulips (1 and 5 cents), daffodils (2 cents), peonies (3 cents) and echinacea and matilija poppies (10 cents).
—Pj Bremier, The Mercury News, 22 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for tulip 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Paul Cappiello, The Courier-Journal, 15 Nov. 2024
Expect a mid-season daffodil or tulip to bloom about two weeks after an early-season variety.
—Megan Hughes, Better Homes & Gardens, 22 Oct. 2024
The dress, in a shade of plum purple, featured an array of flowers including tulips, daffodils and honeysuckle.
—Julia Teti, WWD, 6 Aug. 2024
His set of flowers that will grace this year’s stamp release, and their denomination, will be tulips (1 and 5 cents), daffodils (2 cents), peonies (3 cents) and echinacea and matilija poppies (10 cents).
—Pj Bremier, The Mercury News, 22 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for tulip
Dictionary Entries Near tulip
Cite this Entry
“Tulip.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tulip. Accessed 29 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
tulip
noun
tu·lip
ˈt(y)ü-ləp 
: any of a genus of Eurasian herbs that grow from bulbs, have large lance-shaped leaves, are related to the lilies, and are widely grown for their showy cup-shaped flowers
also
: the flower or bulb of a tulip
Etymology
from scientific Latin tulipa "the tulip," from Turkish tülbent "tulip," literally "turban"
Word Origin
We often think of the tulip as a Dutch flower. The Dutch certainly do grow many tulips, but they first got the plant from Turkey. The Turkish word for the tulip was tülbent, meaning literally "turban." Perhaps it was the flower's shape that reminded the Turks of a turban. Or perhaps it was the bright colors and velvety petals. In any case, scientists picking a universal word for the flower chose the scientific Latin tulipa, taken from the Turkish word. The word came into English from the scientific Latin and was spelled tulip.
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share