carnation

noun

car·​na·​tion kär-ˈnā-shən 

1

: a plant of any of numerous often cultivated and usually double-flowered varieties or subspecies of an Old World pink (Dianthus caryophyllus) found in many color variations

2

: a moderate red

3

archaic : the variable color of human flesh

Examples of carnation in a Sentence

The groom wore a carnation in his buttonhole.

Recent Examples on the Web

This country’s flowers are stunning and range from Gerbera Daisies to orchids and carnations. —Liza B. Zimmerman, Forbes.com, 2 Sep. 2025

Not a true moss, Irish moss is a ground cover related to carnations. —Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 19 Aug. 2025

The high hollyhocks had dried above the yellowed parsley and the Chinese carnations, which had not even been able to open: this sky replaced everything. —Literary Hub, 22 July 2025

Keeping with historical accuracy, most of the flowers were roses and carnations, and mostly white. —Rebecca Alter, Vulture, 14 July 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle French, from Old Italian carnagione, from carne flesh, from Latin carn-, caro

First Known Use

circa 1535, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Rhymes for carnation

• ablation
• bination
• cassation
• castration
• causation
• centration
• cessation
• cetacean
• chelation
• citation
• collation
• conflation

Kids Definition

carnation

noun

car·​na·​tion kär-ˈnā-shən 

1

: a moderate red

2

: any of the numerous cultivated herbs of the genus of pinks with reddish, pink, yellow, or white usually double flowers