Azalea

How to spell azalea

6 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce azalea

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does azalea mean?

1. nounA flowering shrub of the rhododendron family, grown for its showy spring blooms.

Azalea in a sentence

• The front garden was bordered by a pink azalea in full bloom.

• She planted an azalea in acidic soil near the shaded fence.

Where does azalea come from?

Language of origin: Greek

Azalea comes from the Greek azaleos, meaning 'dry' or 'parched'. The Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus adopted it as a formal genus name in the eighteenth century, apparently because he believed these shrubs flourished in dry, arid soil; in reality azaleas usually prefer moist, acidic ground, so the name rests on a botanical misunderstanding. The Greek root is related to azein, 'to dry up' or 'to parch', the same idea of something scorched of moisture. When the plants became popular ornamental flowering shrubs, the Latinised genus name passed straight into English as the everyday word. The unstressed middle vowels, the 'zal' in the centre and the soft '-ea' ending, are what make the spelling slip, since the sound gives no clear guide to the letters.

How the word is built

• azale- (from Greek azaleos: dry)
• -a (Latinate botanical noun ending)