Flower Meanings 101: Your Ultimate Guide to Picking Flowers for Different Occasions

The tradition of offering flowers to your loved ones, laying them in tombs, offering them to the dead, and making floral headdresses, garlands, wreaths, and bouquets dates back to ancient Egypt and has since been one of the most popular gift choices. While most of us pick flowers for our bouquets based on their aesthetic appeal, it’s sometimes helpful to learn flower meanings for appropriate gifting.

How Did Flowers Get Their Meanings?

If you’re new to this concept, don’t worry. It wasn’t until the 1800s that flowers were assigned a specific meaning. In the Victorian era, blooms became the symbol of love. If you were born in that particular period, you wouldn’t really need to articulate your thoughts into words. You could simply proclaim your feelings for someone through a bouquet.

Culture plays a significant role coupled with myths and legends in determining each flower’s specific meaning. Although widely associated with the Victorian era, the language of flowers, or floriography, has been around for centuries in various cultures throughout Africa, Asia, and Europe. 

If you’re familiar with Shakespeare’s work, you might know that a lot of it also involved flower symbolism. Perhaps the most famous is the story of Narcissus from Greek mythology.

According to the popular myth, Narcissus was a beautiful young man who accidentally caught his reflection in the lake water and was immediately obsessed over his looks. He was so intrigued that he never left the lakeside, gazing at himself without any sleep or food.

Eventually, Narcissus passed away at the lake, and it was at that particular spot that the first narcissus flower, commonly known as daffodil, bloomed.

The flower, owing to this Greek mythology, symbolises sympathy, the return of affection, requited love, and the coming of spring.

Popular Flower Meanings & Symbolism

According to Victorian floriography, the number of flowers in a bouquet also held particular importance. It added nuance to the communication and could convey varying sentiments or symbols. So, before we jump into flower meanings for specific blooms, let’s take a look at the meanings behind single flowers and a bouquet!

Single Flower Meanings

• Initial stages of romance: A single flower signifies an initial or budding interest in someone early on in a romantic relationship. It was used to hint at the potential to develop deeper feelings with time.
• Focus: Using a single flower emphasises the flower meanings associated with that particular flower. For example, passion and love would be represented unmistakable via a single rose.
• Simplicity: A single flower conveys a sense of directness and simplicity in your message, so the receiver is clear about the sender’s emotions.

Bouquet

• Special occasions or celebrations: Bouquets were and still are a popular choice for special occasions and celebrations, such as anniversaries, weddings, or birthdays, where the senders and receivers feel a wide range of emotions.
• Expression of affection: Bouquets are used to express various emotions, from sympathy and friendship to admiration and love. But it also widely depends on the specific arrangement and floral selection in your bouquet.
• Variety: Creating a personalised and nuanced message is easier with bouquets that carry their distinct meaning.
• Complexity: You can convey various rich layers of your emotions through a bouquet and relay a combination of emotions or a more complex message.

Now that we have a better idea of the meanings behind single flowers and bouquets, let’s take a look at some of the most popular choices of blooms and their specific flower meanings:

Carnation Flower Meanings

What Their Colours Represent

• Purple: Unpredictable and capricious nature
• Yellow: Rejection or disappointment
• Pink: A mother’s love
• White: Good luck and pure love
• Red: Admiration and deep love

Occasions They’re Used For

• Farewell: White carnations can be gifted to loved ones starting a brand new journey in their lives. If you’re wondering what to give to anyone leaving the country or starting a new job, they’d prove to be the perfect choice to wish them good luck.
• Graduation: This flower is often gifted to students who are graduating or those who have received sports or academic awards.
• Mother’s Day: Since pink carnations represent a mother’s love, they are a perfect choice for Mother’s Day to express your respect and love to your mother or motherly figures.

^{While most carnations represent positive feelings, the yellow ones are typically used to show disappointment or rejection.}

Gerbera Flower Meaning

What Their Colours Represent

• White: Innocence and purity
• Red: Love and desire
• Pink: Sympathy, high esteem, and admiration
• Yellow: Happiness and friendship
• Purple: Feminine beauty, pride, and elegance
• Orange: warmth, energy, and enthusiasm

Occasions They’re Used For

• Bridesmaids parties: You can pick yellow gerberas every time you want to bring your friends closer and infuse your friendships with happiness.
• Proposals: Red gerberas can help you not only proclaim your love for someone but also let them know you’re fully immersed in your love for them.
• Condolences: Sending someone a get well soon bouquet? Make sure you’re including pink gerberas reflecting your sympathy and admiration for the receiver.

Hydrangea Flower Meaning

What Their Colours Represent

• Pink: Romance, love, and heartfelt emotions
• Purple: A longing for deeper understanding
• Blue: Regret, forgiveness, and apology
• White: Abundance, innocence, and purity

Occasions They’re Used For

• First date: Purple hydrangeas represent a desire or longing for deeper understanding and hence are a perfect pick for the initial stages of a relationship or first dates.
• Apology: According to a Japanese story, blue hydrangeas were gifted by an emperor to his lover, who was seeking her forgiveness for neglecting her and focusing his attention on other businesses.
• Wedding Anniversary: If you’re looking for a wedding anniversary present for your partner, nothing symbolises heartfelt emotions and appreciation as well as pink hydrangeas.

Baby’s Breath Flower Meaning

What Their Colours Represent

• Yellow: Optimism, joy, and happiness
• Purple: Beauty, royalty, and nobility
• Pink: Romance, love, and gentle emotions
• Red: Romance, affection, and love
• Blue: Respect, trust, and honesty
• White: Spirituality, innocence, and unity

Occasions They’re Used For

• Baby reveal parties: Pick out pink baby’s breath flowers to showcase your gentle love, specifically if you’re having a baby girl.
• Birthdays: Family members and friends may be gifted yellow baby’s breath flowers to wish them a joyous and happiness-filled life.
• New parents: As its name suggests, a baby’s breath symbolises the birth of a child and therefore a white baby’s breath is a perfect gift for them and their parents. 

Rose Flower Meaning

What Their Colours Represent

• Purple: Enchantment and royalty 
• Green: Rejuvenation and peace
• White: Purity and innocence
• Blue: Unattainability and mysteriousness
• Yellow: Affection and joy
• Peach: Sincerity and gratitude
• Pink: Elegance and admiration
• Red: Beauty and love

Occasions They’re Used For

• Gratitude: Roses have long been used to showcase your gratitude and appreciation for someone. Peach roses are the safest choice when sending a thank you note or gift to someone.
• Valentine’s Day: The most popular and appropriate choice for Valentine’s Day is a red rose or a bouquet of red roses, which symbolise love.
• Anniversary or wedding gifts: Since white roses symbolise innocence and purity, the white rose, also known as the bridal rose, is used in bridal bouquets to highlight the new bond of marriage. They also make for a perfect anniversary present.

Roses became a symbol of love back in the Middle Ages.

Have Your Pick!

Now that you’re familiar with the tradition of flower gifting and specific flower meanings for some of the popular picks, you can make the right choice regardless of the upcoming special occasion or celebration. Express your feelings with us and showcase your emotions without any confusion or indecisiveness!