---
title: "Flower meanings: what 69 flowers symbolise | Floreboard"
url: https://floreboard.com/en/guides/flower-meanings/
language: en
last_reviewed: 2026-10-06
publisher: Floreboard (芳华绘)
---

# Flower meanings: the language of flowers

The popular meanings of 69 cut flowers and branches — Western flower language alongside Chinese and Japanese symbolism — with season and colours for each.

## Key facts

- Flower meanings are conventions, not rules, and vary by culture.
- The same flower can be celebratory in one country and funereal in another — chrysanthemum is the classic case.

| Flower | Meaning | In season | Colours |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Agapanthus](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/agapanthus/) | Love letters — the "flower of love" | Summer | blue, white |
| [Alstroemeria](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/alstroemeria/) | Friendship and devotion | Year-round | pink, white, yellow, orange, red, purple |
| [Anemone](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/anemone/) | Anticipation | Winter, Spring | red, white, purple, pink, blue |
| [Anthurium](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/anthurium/) | Hospitality | Year-round | red, pink, white, green |
| [Baby's breath](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/gypsophila/) | Innocence and everlasting love | Year-round | white, pink |
| [Bamboo](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/bamboo/) | Integrity and resilience; "bamboo brings news of peace" | Year-round | green |
| [Bird of paradise](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/strelitzia/) | Freedom and joy | Year-round | orange |
| [Calla lily](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/calla/) | Purity and devotion | Year-round | white, yellow, pink, purple, orange |
| [Camellia](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/camellia/) | Admiration and understated elegance | Winter | red, pink, white |
| [Carnation](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/carnation/) | A mother's love and gratitude | Year-round | red, pink, white, yellow, orange, purple, green |
| [Celosia](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/celosia/) | Unfading affection | Summer, Autumn | red, orange, yellow, pink |
| [Chamomile](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/chamomile/) | Energy in adversity | Spring, Summer | white |
| [Cherry blossom](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/cherry/) | The beauty of things that pass | Spring | pink, white |
| [China aster](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/aster/) | Patience and remembrance | Summer, Autumn | purple, pink, white, blue, red |
| [Chrysanthemum](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/chrysanthemum/) | Longevity and nobility in East Asia; white and yellow are also flowers of mourning | Autumn | white, yellow, pink, purple, red, orange, green |
| [Cornflower](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/cornflower/) | Delicacy and meeting happiness | Spring, Summer | blue, pink, white |
| [Cosmos](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/cosmos/) | Harmony and modesty | Summer, Autumn | pink, white, red |
| [Cotton stems](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/cotton/) | Cherish the people beside you | Autumn | white |
| [Crabapple blossom](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/crabapple/) | Prosperity for the household, in Chinese tradition | Spring | pink, white |
| [Dahlia](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/dahlia/) | Elegance and dignity | Summer, Autumn | red, pink, orange, yellow, white, purple |
| [Daisy (marguerite)](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/daisy/) | Innocence | Spring, Summer | white, yellow, pink |
| [Delphinium](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/delphinium/) | Lightness and an open heart | Spring, Summer | blue, purple, white, pink |
| [Dendrobium orchid](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/dendrobium/) | Fatherly love and strength — a Father's Day flower in some regions | Year-round | white, purple, pink, green |
| [Forsythia](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/forsythia/) | Anticipation | Spring | yellow |
| [Freesia](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/freesia/) | Innocence and friendship | Winter, Spring | white, yellow, pink, purple, red |
| [Gardenia](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/gardenia/) | Purity and secret love | Summer | white |
| [Gerbera daisy](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/gerbera/) | Cheerfulness | Year-round | red, pink, white, yellow, orange |
| [Gladiolus](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/gladiolus/) | Strength of character; "rising step by step" in Chinese | Summer, Autumn | red, pink, white, yellow, orange, purple, green |
| [Globe amaranth](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/gomphrena/) | Unfading love | Summer, Autumn | purple, pink, white, red |
| [Holly](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/holly/) | Christmas, protection and good luck | Winter | red, green |
| [Hyacinth](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/hyacinth/) | Constancy and rebirth | Winter, Spring | blue, purple, pink, white |
| [Hydrangea](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/hydrangea/) | Gratitude and abundance | Summer | blue, pink, white, purple, green |
| [Iris](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/iris/) | Faith, hope and good news | Spring, Summer | blue, purple, white, yellow |
| [Ivy](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/ivy/) | Fidelity — a traditional wedding foliage | Year-round | green |
| [Jasmine](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/jasmine/) | Sweetness, purity and fidelity | Summer | white |
| [Lavender](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/lavender/) | Calm and devotion | Summer | purple |
| [Lilac](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/lilac/) | First love | Spring | purple, white, pink |
| [Lily](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/lily/) | Purity; in Chinese weddings, "a hundred years of harmony" | Year-round | white, pink, yellow, orange, red |
| [Lily of the valley](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/lilyvalley/) | The return of happiness | Spring | white |
| [Lisianthus](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/lisianthus/) | Appreciation and sincere, unchanging love | Year-round | white, pink, purple, green |
| [Lotus](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/lotus/) | Purity — rising unstained from the mud | Summer | pink, white |
| [Lotus pod](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/lotuspod/) | Many children and blessings | Summer, Autumn | green |
| [Magnolia](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/magnolia/) | Nobility and purity | Spring | white, pink, purple |
| [Marigold](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/marigold/) | Longevity in China; the flower of Día de los Muertos in Mexico and of festival garlands in India | Summer, Autumn | orange, yellow |
| [Myrtle](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/myrtle/) | Love and marriage — a traditional sprig in royal wedding bouquets | Year-round | green |
| [Narcissus (daffodil)](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/narcissus/) | New beginnings; good fortune at Lunar New Year in China | Winter | yellow, white |
| [Orchids (cut)](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/orchid/) | Refinement and elegance | Year-round | white, pink, purple, yellow, green |
| [Osmanthus](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/osmanthus/) | Honour and success; the scent of the Mid-Autumn Festival | Autumn | yellow, orange, white |
| [Peach blossom](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/peach/) | Luck in love and prosperity — a Lunar New Year staple in southern China | Spring | pink, white, red |
| [Peony (herbaceous)](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/herbaceous-peony/) | Romance and a happy marriage | Spring | pink, white, red |
| [Pine](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/pine/) | Longevity and steadfastness | Year-round | green |
| [Plum blossom](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/plum/) | Resilience — one of the "three friends of winter" | Winter | pink, white, red |
| [Poppy](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/poppy/) | Remembrance and consolation | Spring | red, orange, yellow, white, pink |
| [Protea](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/protea/) | Courage and transformation | Winter, Spring | pink, white, red |
| [Pussy willow](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/pussywillow/) | "Silver stays": money kept in the household, a Lunar New Year wish | Winter, Spring | silver-grey |
| [Ranunculus](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/ranunculus/) | Radiant charm | Winter, Spring | pink, white, yellow, orange, red, purple |
| [Rose](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/rose/) | Love and romance | Year-round | red, pink, white, yellow, orange, purple, green |
| [Snapdragon](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/snapdragon/) | Graciousness; in southern China, "gold to spare" at New Year | Spring | white, pink, yellow, orange, red |
| [Statice](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/statice/) | Remembrance | Year-round | purple, blue, pink, white, yellow |
| [Stock (Matthiola)](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/stock/) | Lasting beauty and bonds of affection | Winter, Spring | white, pink, purple, yellow |
| [Sunflower](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/sunflower/) | Adoration, loyalty and optimism | Summer | yellow, orange |
| [Sweet pea](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/sweetpea/) | Blissful pleasure and a fond goodbye | Spring | pink, purple, white, red |
| [Tree peony](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/peony/) | Wealth and honour — the "king of flowers" in China | Spring | pink, red, white, yellow, purple |
| [Tulip](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/tulip/) | A declaration of love | Winter, Spring | red, pink, white, yellow, orange, purple |
| [Water lily](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/waterlily/) | Purity | Summer | white, pink, yellow, purple, blue |
| [Wheat ears](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/wheat/) | Harvest and prosperity — a good-luck stem in Chinese shop-opening gifts | Summer | yellow |
| [Winterberry](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/redbean/) | Longing and remembrance; good fortune at Chinese New Year | Autumn, Winter | red, orange |
| [Wisteria](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/wisteria/) | Welcome and long life | Spring | purple, white |
| [Zinnia](https://floreboard.com/en/flowers/zinnia/) | Thoughts of absent friends | Summer, Autumn | red, pink, orange, yellow, white, green, purple |

Meanings shift with colour and number as well: [Flower colour meanings across cultures](https://floreboard.com/en/guides/flower-color-meanings/) · [How many flowers to give: meanings and taboos by culture](https://floreboard.com/en/guides/flower-numbers/) · [Birth month flowers](https://floreboard.com/en/guides/birth-month-flowers/) · [Wedding anniversary flowers by year](https://floreboard.com/en/guides/anniversary-flowers/)

## FAQ

### Which flowers mean love?

Rose (Love and romance); Tulip (A declaration of love); Peony (herbaceous) (Romance and a happy marriage); Lisianthus (Appreciation and sincere, unchanging love); Globe amaranth (Unfading love); Agapanthus (Love letters — the "flower of love").

### Which flowers say thank you?

Carnation (A mother's love and gratitude); Hydrangea (Gratitude and abundance); Lisianthus (Appreciation and sincere, unchanging love); Dahlia (Elegance and dignity).

### Which flowers mean remembrance or sympathy?

Chrysanthemum (Longevity and nobility in East Asia; white and yellow are also flowers of mourning); Statice (Remembrance); Poppy (Remembrance and consolation); China aster (Patience and remembrance).

### Which flowers bring luck in Chinese tradition?

Tree peony (Wealth and honour — the "king of flowers" in China); Peach blossom (Luck in love and prosperity — a Lunar New Year staple in southern China); Pussy willow ("Silver stays": money kept in the household, a Lunar New Year wish); Narcissus (daffodil) (New beginnings; good fortune at Lunar New Year in China); Bamboo (Integrity and resilience; "bamboo brings news of peace"); Crabapple blossom (Prosperity for the household, in Chinese tradition); Gladiolus (Strength of character; "rising step by step" in Chinese); Anthurium (Hospitality).

### Are flower meanings the same everywhere?

No. Most "meanings" come from Victorian flower dictionaries, Chinese homophones and poetry, or modern gifting culture, and the same flower can carry opposite messages: chrysanthemums are cheerful gifts in the US and funeral flowers in East Asia and much of Europe.

Last reviewed: 2026-10-06. Meanings listed are the most widely cited ones; flowers without a settled meaning are left out. [About our data](https://floreboard.com/en/about/)