Peony \Pe"o*ny\, n.; pl. Peonies. [OE. pione, pioine, pioni, OF. pione, F. pivoine, L. paeonia, Gr. ?, fr. ?, ?, the god of healing. Cf. P[ae]an.]

(Bot.) A plant, and its flower, of the ranunculaceous genus P[ae]onia. Of the four or five species, one is a shrub; the rest are perennial herbs with showy flowers, often double in cultivation. [Written also p[ae]ony, and piony.]

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)