deflower
deflower Lexical Profile
deflower Game Scores & Validity
• verb
To deprive of virginity, especially a woman (dated or literary).
"In many 19th-century melodramas, the villain's plot to deflower the innocent heroine serves as the central moral conflict."
To spoil, mar, or strip of pristine beauty, freshness, or perfection.
"Unchecked industrial logging threatened to deflower the untouched mountain valley."
To strip or pluck the blossoms from a plant, often to encourage stronger root or foliage growth.
"Gardeners often deflower young strawberry plants during their first spring so the roots can establish themselves."
Word Nuance & Usage
While its literal horticultural sense of removing blossoms is still used by gardeners, in general contexts the word is predominantly associated with its dated, literary meaning regarding the loss of virginity or the spoiling of something pristine.
• Rhymes for deflower
Word Origin & Etymology
Borrowed in the late 14th century from Old French desflorer, from Late Latin deflorare ('to strip of flowers, despoil'), formed from the prefix de- ('away from') and flos ('flower').