wallflower

Meanings

1. 1nouncountableinformal

   A shy person who stays at the edge of a party or dance and does not join in.

   Grammar: Countable and informal: she was a wallflower at the party.

   Patterns

   • a wallflower at something
   • be a wallflower

   He spent the whole dance as a wallflower, watching from the corner.

   She used to be a wallflower, but now she loves parties.

   Don't be a wallflower, come and join us on the dance floor.

2. 2nouncountable

   A garden plant with sweet-smelling yellow, orange or red flowers that blooms in spring and often grows on old walls.

   Grammar: Countable: a wallflower, rows of wallflowers.

   Patterns

   • plant wallflowers
   • wallflowers in bloom

   The border was full of orange wallflowers in April.

   Wallflowers grew from cracks in the old stone wall.

   Their sweet scent drifted from the bed of wallflowers.

Word forms

Common combinations

a bit of a wallflower

I am a bit of a wallflower at big parties.

play the wallflower

She played the wallflower until the music started.

wallflower at the dance

He was the wallflower at the dance.

spring wallflowers

Spring wallflowers scent the whole garden.

shy wallflower

The shy wallflower finally asked someone to dance.

Synonyms and how they differ

introvert

An introvert is a person who prefers quiet, while a wallflower is shy specifically at social events.

shrinking violet

A shrinking violet is an extremely shy person in general, while a wallflower is shy at a particular gathering.

loner

A loner prefers being alone by choice, whereas a wallflower often wants to join but holds back.

bystander

A bystander watches events without taking part, whereas a wallflower watches because of shyness.

Opposites

Word family

wall noun

a vertical structure, which gives the first half of the word

flower noun

the colorful part of a plant, which gives the second half

wallflowers noun

the plural form, also used for a group of shy guests

Commonly confused: wallflower or shrinking violet?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “wallflower”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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