Hollyhock

2 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Hollyhock \Hol"ly*hock\, n. [OE. holihoc; holi holy + hoc
     mallow, AS. hoc; cf. W. hocys mallows, hocys bendigaid
     hollyhock, lit., blessed mallow. Prob. so named because
     brought from the Holy Land. See {Holy}.] (Bot.)
     A species of {Alth[ae]a} ({Alth[ae]a rosea}), bearing flowers
     of various colors; -- called also {rose mallow}.


  
     Note: Rose mallow is listed as a variety of Hibiscus, not
           Hollyhock in several Web pages. Name change???
           [1913 Webster +PJC]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  hollyhock
       n 1: any of various plants of the genus Althaea; similar to but
            having smaller flowers than genus Alcea [syn: {althea},
            {althaea}]
       2: any of various tall plants of the genus Alcea; native to the
          Middle East but widely naturalized and cultivated for its
          very large variously colored flowers