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Definition of madagascar periwinkle
madagascar periwinkle
Plural:Madagascar periwinkles
madagascar periwinkle Lexical Profile
CEFR
C1
Grade
11
Tier
3
Usage
Rare
• noun
1
An evergreen herbaceous subshrub of the dogbane family (Apocynaceae), Catharanthus roseus, native to Madagascar, widely cultivated as a garden flower for its glossy oval leaves and showy five-petaled blossoms in shades of rose-pink, white, or purple, and valued in medicine as a source of anticancer alkaloids.
Example
"The sunny border was planted with Madagascar periwinkle, whose vibrant pink and white blossoms thrived in the summer heat."
• Nearby Words
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.
180019102020
Data source: Google Books Ngram Viewer
Cite this Entry
Wordmom. (2026). Definition of Madagascar periwinkle. In Wordmom Dictionary. Retrieved Oct 16, 2026, from https://wordmom.com/dictionary/madagascar periwinkle