lilac

English

Wikipedia

Etymology

From Arabic ليلك (līlak), from Persian نیلک (nilak), from نیل (nil, “dark blue”), ultimately from Sanskrit नीला (nīlā, “dark blue”)

Pronunciation

• (US, UK) IPA^(key): /ˈlɑɪlək/

Noun

lilac (plural lilacs)

1. A large shrub of the genus Syringa, bearing white, pale pink, or purple flowers.
2. A flower of the lilac shrub.
   • 1907, Robert Chambers, chapter 5, The Younger Set^[1]:

     Breezes blowing from beds of iris quickened her breath with their perfume ; she saw the tufted lilacs sway in the wind, and the streamers of rose-tinted wistaria swinging, all a-glisten with golden bees ; … .

3. A pale purple colour, the colour of some lilac flowers.

   lilac colour:

Translations

shrub

• Arabic: ليلك m (laylak)
• Armenian: յասաման (hy) (yasaman)
• Catalan: lila (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 丁香 (zh) (dīngxiāng)

• Czech: šeřík m
• Dutch: sering (nl), seringen (nl) pl
• Finnish: syreeni (fi)
• French: lilas (fr) m
• German: Flieder (de) m
• Greek: πασχαλιά (el) f (paschaliá)
• Hindi: बकायन f (bakāyan)
• Hungarian: orgona (hu), orgonabokor, orgonafa
• Italian: lillà m
• Japanese: ライラック (rairakku)

• Latvian: ceriņš m, ceriņi pl
• Persian: یاس شیروانی (yâs-e širvâni)
• Polish: lilak (pl) m, bez (pl) m
• Portuguese: lilás (pt) m
• Romanian: liliac (ro) m
• Russian: сирень (ru) f (sirénʹ)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: јоргован m

  Roman: jorgovan m

• Slovak: orgovan m
• Spanish: lila (es) f
• Swedish: syren (sv) c, syrenbuske c
• Turkish: leylak (tr)
• Urdu: بکاین f (bakāyan)
• Volapük: süren (vo)

flower

• Arabic: ليلك m (laylak)
• Armenian: յասաման (hy) (yasaman)
• Breton: lireu
• Catalan: lila (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 丁香 (zh) (dīngxiāng)

• Cornish: laylok
• Czech: šeřík m
• Danish: syren
• Dutch: sering (nl)
• Finnish: syreeninkukka
• French: lilas (fr) m
• Georgian: იასამანი (iasamani)
• German: Flieder (de) m, Zartlila n
• Greek: πασχαλιά (el) f (paschaliá)
• Hindi: बकायन f (bakāyan)
• Hungarian: orgona (hu), orgonavirág
• Italian: lillà m
• Japanese: ライラック (rairakku)

• Korean: 라일락 (ko) (raillak)
• Manx: laylac
• Northern Sotho: perese
• Norwegian: syrin
• Persian: یاس شیروانی (yâs-e širvâni)
• Polish: lilak (pl) m, bez (pl) m
• Portuguese: lilás (pt) m
• Romanian: liliac (ro) m
• Russian: сирень (ru) f (sirénʹ)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: јоргован m

  Roman: jorgovan m

• Spanish: lila (es) f
• Sranan Tongo: lila
• Swedish: syren (sv) c
• Tatar: шомырт (tt) (şomırt)
• Turkish: leylak (tr)
• Urdu: بکاین f (bakāyan)
• West Frisian: nageltsjebeam

colour

• Catalan: lila (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 淡紫色 (dàn zǐsè)

• Dutch: lila (nl)
• Finnish: liila (fi), violetti (fi)
• French: lilas (fr)
• Hungarian: orgonalila, halványlila (hu)
• Italian: lilla (it) n

• Japanese: ライラック色 (rairakku-iro)
• Polish: barwa liliowa
• Portuguese: lilás (pt) m
• Romanian: violet (ro) n
• Russian: сиреневый (ru) (sirénevyj), лиловый (ru) m (lilóvyj)
• Scottish Gaelic: liath-chòrcra f
• Spanish: lila (es)

Adjective

lilac (comparative more lilac, superlative most lilac)

1. (colour) having a pale purple colour.

Translations

colour

• Arabic: ليلكي (leylakey)
• Catalan: lila (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 淡紫色的

• Estonian: lilla
• Finnish: liila (fi), violetti (fi)
• Georgian: იასამნისფერი (iasamnisp’eri)
• German: lila (de), lilafarbig, zartlila

• Hungarian: orgonalila, halványlila (hu)
• Low German: lila, violett
• Portuguese: lilás (pt)
• Romanian: liliachiu (ro), lila (ro), violet (ro)
• Russian: сиреневый /sir'én'evyj/
• Scottish Gaelic: liath-chòrcra, liath-ghorm
• Swedish: lila (sv), gredelin (sv), violett (sv)

See also

• syringa
• bunchflower
• Appendix:Colors

Derived terms

• lilacky

Anagrams

• Cilla