corolla

Estimated CEFR level: C2 — Proficiency

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

noun (botany) the whorl of petals of a flower that collectively form an inner floral envelope or layer of the perianth

From Latin corōlla (“small garland, chaplet or wreath”), diminutive of corōna (“garland, chaplet, wreath”).

Flames burst forth from his skull like a corolla, shrieking like voices: —Hell! — A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, James Joyce
There was a corolla of escholtzia-yellow about the strait hips, a heavy golden girdle dangling. — The Boy with Wings, Berta Ruck
Now it is settled above one of the corollas, and plunges its head into it without ceasing to beat with its wings. — Adventures of a Young Naturalist, Lucien Biart

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