periwinkle

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a small edible marine snail of the genus Littorina, especially the common periwinkle

   The biologist measured each periwinkle before returning it to the tidal pool.

2. 2
   noun

   a low-growing evergreen plant of the genus Vinca, or a related tropical plant of the genus Catharanthus, typically bearing blue, purple, pink, or white flowers

   Periwinkle spread beneath the shrubs and flowered in early spring.

3. 3
   adj

   of a pale purplish-blue color resembling the flower

   She painted the shutters periwinkle to echo the flowers along the path.

The snail name descends from Old English pinewincle, combining a word for a mussel with wincel, "corner or spiral shell." The plant name has a separate history through Middle English pervinke and Old English perwince, ultimately from Latin pervinca. Their modern spellings converged.

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