: any of a genus (Littorina) of edible littoral marine snails
also: any of various similar or related marine snails
b
: any of several North American freshwater snails
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periwinkle a
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Noun
The twisted stars of periwinkles, towering hollyhocks with their hot-pink Medusa heads, the lion-mane frills of marigolds.—Literary Hub, 15 Aug. 2025 Shade-loving plants include anthurium, astilbe, begonia, bleeding heart, bromeliad, caladiums, coleus, cranesbill, ferns, foxglove, hellebore, hostas, impatiens, Lily of the Valley, Liriope, lobelia, lungwort, moneywort, periwinkle, spiderwort, trillium, and viola.—Clarence Schmidt, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 Aug. 2025 Snag it in three colors: soft olive, soft periwinkle, and summer sand.—Ali Faccenda, People.com, 4 July 2025 There were satin boxing boots in hot pink and periwinkle.—Julissa James, Los Angeles Times, 2 July 2025 See All Example Sentences for periwinkle
Word History
Etymology
Noun (1)
Middle English perwinke, from Old English perwince, from Vulgar Latin *pervinca, short for Latin vincapervinca
Noun (2)
Middle English *periwinkle, alteration of Old English pīnewincle, from Latin pina, a kind of mussel (from Greek) + Old English -wincle (akin to Danish vincle snail shell)
First Known Use
Noun (1)
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
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