# poinsettia

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˌpɔɪnˈsɛ.tɪə/ · frequency rank #82,674

## Definitions
1. A plant, Euphorbia pulcherrima, with rather small and insignificant flowers surrounded by large bright red leaves; native to Mexico and Central America and widely cultivated as a garden plant;; widely used in Christmas floral displays.

## Etymology
After the obsolete genus name Poinsettia, named after Joel Roberts Poinsett (19th-century US minister to Mexico); equivalent to Poinsett + -ia.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/poinsettia