Meaning & use
dried flower
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable
A flower that has been allowed to dry out so it keeps its shape for decoration.
Grammar: Countable, so you can say 'a dried flower' or 'dried flowers' in the plural.
Patterns
- a dried flower
- dried flowers
- a bouquet of dried flowers
She keeps a jar of dried flowers on the kitchen windowsill.
The shop sells dried flowers, candles and handmade cards.
Dried flowers last for months if you keep them out of direct sun.
noununcountable
The craft or hobby of preserving flowers by drying them and arranging them.
Grammar: Used as a subject area without 'a' or a plural: dried flower is a popular hobby.
Patterns
- dried flower arranging
- a dried flower workshop
Dried flower arranging has become popular again.
He teaches a weekend course in dried flower crafts.
Word forms
| plural | dried flowers |
|---|
Common combinations
- a bouquet of dried flowers
- She hung a bouquet of dried flowers above the fireplace.
- dried flower arrangement
- The table had a simple dried flower arrangement in the middle.
- dried flowers last
- Dried flowers last much longer than fresh ones.
- preserve flowers by drying
- You can preserve flowers by drying them upside down.
- artificial and dried flowers
- The stall sold artificial and dried flowers at low prices.
Synonyms and how they differ
- pressed flower
- A flower flattened between sheets of paper, usually for cards or albums, rather than dried whole and kept in a vase.
- everlasting flower
- A flower that naturally keeps its shape and color when dry, such as a strawflower; 'dried flower' can be any flower you dry yourself.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: dried flower or dead flower?
dried flower vs dead flower
'Dead' means the plant has finished living and often looks wilted; 'dried' means it was preserved on purpose and still looks good as decoration.
Practice
Choose the sentence that uses 'dried flower' correctly.
Choose one answer.
'Dried flower' is a noun phrase for a preserved flower used as decoration, so it can go in a vase without water. Option 1 is wrong because dried flowers are not put in water, and options 3 and 4 use the wrong form.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “dried flower”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.