- the coloured muscular diaphragm that surrounds and controls the size of the pupil
- Also called: fleur-de-lys any plant of the iridaceous genus Iris, having brightly coloured flowers composed of three petals and three drooping sepals
See also flag3, orris1 - a rare or poetic word for rainbow
- short for iris diaphragm
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
i•ris /ˈaɪrɪs/USA pronunciation
n. [countable], pl. i•ris•es; esp. for 1. ir•i•des /ˈɪrɪˌdiz, ˈaɪrɪ-/USA pronunciation .
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- Anatomythe round, colored, front part of the eye that contains an opening, the pupil, in its center.
- Plant Biologya plant having showy, colorful flowers.
i•ris
(ī′ris),USA pronunciation n., pl. i•ris•es, ir•i•des (ir′i dēz′, ī′ri-),USA pronunciation v.
n.
v.i.
I•ris (ī′ris),USA pronunciation n.
n.
- [Anat.]the contractile, circular diaphragm forming the colored portion of the eye and containing a circular opening, the pupil, in its center. See diag. under eye.
- [Bot.]any plant of the genus Iris, having showy flowers and sword-shaped leaves. Cf. iris family.
- a flower of this plant.
- (cap.) [Class. Myth.]a messenger of the gods, regarded as the goddess of the rainbow.
- a rainbow.
- any appearance resembling a rainbow.
- [Motion Pictures, Television.]an iris-in or iris-out.
- Photography[Optics, Photog.]See iris diaphragm.
v.i.
- [Motion Pictures.]to begin or end a take or scene with an iris-in or iris-out, achieved by manipulation of an iris diaphragm on the camera or by editing the film.
- Greek: diaphragm of eye
- Neo-Latin
- Greek Îris, îris rainbow, goddess of the rainbow, halo, iris flower or root, iridescent crystal; in some senses
- Latin Īris, īris
- Middle English 1350–1400
I•ris (ī′ris),USA pronunciation n.
- a female given name.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
iris /ˈaɪrɪs/ n ( pl irises, irides /ˈaɪrɪˌdiːz; ˈɪrɪ-/)
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
Iris /ˈaɪrɪs/ n
- the goddess of the rainbow along which she travelled to earth as a messenger of the gods
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'iris' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
ciliary body
- crystalline lens
- eye
- flag
- fleur-de-lys
- iridaceous
- irido-
- iris diaphragm
- iritis
- orris
- paua
- pupil
- rhizome
- uvea
- walleye
- Winslet
- Yeşilirmak
- acidanthera
- apostle plant
- Arce
- between-the-lens shutter
- blackberry lily
- Black Iris, The
- blue-eyed grass
- blue flag
- choroid coat
- circle
- circle-in
- circle-out
- cloth-of-gold
- consensual
- copper iris
- cornea
- cornflag
- corn lily
- crested iris
- crimson flag
- crocus
- dark-eyed junco
- diaphragm shutter
- dwarf crested iris
- dysadaptation
- English iris
- flag seat
- fleur-de-lis
- flower-de-luce
- freesia
- gladiolus
- glaucoma
- hyacinth
