honeysuckle
honeysuckle Lexical Profile
honeysuckle Game Scores & Validity
• noun
Any of various arching shrubs or twining vines of the genus Lonicera (family Caprifoliaceae), native across the Northern Hemisphere and cultivated for their sweetly fragrant, tubular, or two-lipped blossoms in shades of white, yellow, pink, or red.
"The warm summer evening air was filled with the sweet fragrance of blooming honeysuckle along the garden fence."
Any of several other plants bearing tubular, nectar-rich flowers that resemble true honeysuckles, such as native North American azaleas (genus Rhododendron) or Australian trees and shrubs of the genus Banksia.
"Wild mountain honeysuckle grows abundantly along the shaded stream banks of the Appalachian foothills."
Word Origin & Etymology
From Middle English honysokel, descending from Old English hunigsuge ('honey-sucker'), named because sweet nectar can be sucked directly from its tubular flowers.
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.