clove pink

See also: clovepink

English

Alternative forms

• clovepink

Etymology

From clove (“spice”) +‎ pink (“flower”).

Noun

clove pink (plural clove pinks)

1. A plant with clove-scented flowers, Dianthus caryophyllus, formerly used as a flavoring and for fragrance. The ancestor of the carnation.
   • 1831, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter I, in Romance and Reality. […], volume II, London: Henry Colburn and Richard Bentley, […], →OCLC, page 8:

     ...while the bed of the rich crimson clove pink was like one of the spice islands, the very Manilla of the garden.

2. The flower of this plant.

Synonyms

• gillyflower

Translations

carnation — see carnation