Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Violet \Vi"o*let\, n. [F. violette a violet (cf. violet
   violet-colored), dim. of OF. viole a violet, L. viola; akin
   to Gr. ?. Cf. {Iodine}.]
   1. (Bot.) Any plant or flower of the genus {Viola}, of many
      species. The violets are generally low, herbaceous plants,
      and the flowers of many of the species are blue, while
      others are white or yellow, or of several colors, as the
      pansy ({Viola tricolor}).

   Note: The cultivated sweet violet is {Viola odorata} of
         Europe. The common blue violet of the eastern United
         States is {V. cucullata}; the sand, or bird-foot,
         violet is {V. pedata}.

   2. The color of a violet, or that part of the spectrum
      farthest from red. It is the most refrangible part of the
      spectrum.

   3. In art, a color produced by a combination of red and blue
      in equal proportions; a bluish purple color. --Mollett.

   4. (Zo["o]l.) Any one of numerous species of small
      violet-colored butterflies belonging to {Lyc[ae]na}, or
      {Rusticus}, and allied genera.