Coneflower is a modern English compound of cone + flower, named for the raised, cone-shaped central disc of the flower head. The historical trail runs through cone in Middle English and flour in Old French. Morphologically, coneflower is transparent: a modern English compound of cone + flower, named for the raised, cone-shaped central disc of the flower head. Used as a noun, coneflower now means "a daisy-like plant with a raised central cone, such as echinacea", so the present definition can be read against the older forms and meanings. The same lexical family is also visible in related forms such as cone and flower. The modern word remains analyzable through its parts, which makes the semantic connection unusually direct.