Rose Colour Meanings: What Every Colour Really Says
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In 1884 a London dictionary of flower meanings listed the yellow rose as “Decrease of love. Jealously.” (the misprint is in the original). Thirty-three years earlier, an American one said a white rose meant “I would be single.” Neither book has an entry for a pink, orange, peach or lilac rose. Here is what each rose colour means today, what those two dictionaries actually printed, and what we stock in every colour, counted from our own catalogue in October 2026.
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Rose Colour Meanings at a Glance
“Today” is how roses are read now, a convention rather than a rule. “Victorian dictionary” is what Kate Greenaway’s Language of Flowers (London, 1884) or Henrietta Dumont’s The Language of Flowers (Philadelphia, 1851) printed, word for word. A dash means neither book has an entry.
| Colour | Today | Victorian dictionary |
|---|---|---|
| Red | Romantic love | “Love” (1884); “Beauty and Love” (1851) |
| Dark red | Deeper commitment | “Bashful shame” (1884) |
| Pink | Admiration, gratitude | — (pale-pink “Maiden Blush”: “If you love me, you will find it out”) |
| White | Purity, remembrance | “I would be single” (1851); “I am worthy of you” (1884) |
| Yellow | Friendship, joy | “Jealousy” (1851); “Decrease of love” (1884) |
| Orange | Energy, enthusiasm | — |
| Peach | Sincerity, thanks | — |
| Lilac / purple | Enchantment | — |
| Cream | Charm, elegance | — |
| Red + white | No fixed message | “Unity” (1884) |
| Blue | “The impossible” | — |
What Each Rose Colour Means
Garden roses, in Britannica’s words, “range in colour from white through various tones of yellow and pink to dark crimson and maroon”. Notice what is missing from it: there is no blue. We come back to that at the end of this section.
What does a red rose mean?
Love, and on this one the old books and the modern guides agree. Greenaway’s entry for the plain rose is one word, “Love.” Dumont gives the red rose as “Beauty and Love”, retelling the fable that its colour came from Venus’s foot, pierced by a thorn “which on the White Rose being shed, / Made it for ever after red.” The association is far older than either book. As David Gowing and Yoseph Araya of the Open University put it, roses have been associated with love long before St Valentine was on the scene.
Our red rose bouquets page carries 18 arrangements, from R249.95 to R4,299.95.
Which colour rose says “I love you”? And what does red mean in a relationship?
Red. In a relationship it reads as a declaration, which suits anniversaries and Valentine’s Day and can feel heavy on a second date. Pink is the usual step down.
What does a dark red rose mean?
Modern guides treat dark red and burgundy as red with the volume turned up: deeper, longer commitment. Greenaway’s 1884 dictionary disagrees completely. Its entry for “Rose, Deep Red” reads “Bashful shame.” Nobody reads a deep red rose that way today, but it shows how far the meanings have travelled.
What does a pink rose mean?
Today pink stands for admiration, gratitude and gentle affection: romantic without being a declaration, and the safe choice for a new relationship, a mother or a thank-you.
Here is the surprise: neither Victorian dictionary has an entry for a pink rose. The closest is Greenaway’s “Rose, Maiden Blush”, an old pale-pink variety (the Open University notes that some of the old alba roses “were pale pink, such as Queen of Denmark and Maiden’s blush”), whose meaning is wonderfully coy: “If you love me, you will find it out.” Pink’s gratitude meaning comes from modern guides, not from either book. Browse our pink rose arrangements; that page lists 17, from R299.95.
What does a white rose mean?
Today: purity, new beginnings and remembrance, which is why white turns up at both weddings and funerals. The Victorian record is stranger. Dumont’s 1851 dictionary gives the white rose as “I would be single” and illustrates it with a poem about how uneasy life is for a man “who is troubled with a wife”. Greenaway’s 1884 dictionary gives it as “I am worthy of you.” Two books, opposite messages.
The white rose also has a political history. The Wars of the Roses, says Britannica, “were named many years afterward from the supposed badges of the contending parties: the white rose of York and the red rose of Lancaster.”
For funerals, see our sympathy arrangements. Our white roses collection has 8 bouquets, from R299.95 to R949.95.
What does a yellow rose mean?
Today: friendship, joy and congratulations, and deliberately not romance.
That is a complete reversal of the old books. Both Victorian dictionaries treat yellow as the bad-news rose: Dumont gives it as “Jealousy” and tells a German fable in which a white rosebud, envious of her sister’s blush, is turned yellow as a punishment, so that “The Yellow Rose has from that hour / Borne evidence of Envy’s power.” Greenaway is blunter still: “Decrease of love. Jealously.” We stock 6 yellow rose bouquets, from R199.95 to R799.95.
Is a yellow rose romantic? Can I give yellow roses to my girlfriend?
Not on their own. Yellow means friendship today and meant jealousy in the old books, so a bunch of yellow roses to a partner says “we’re friends” or worse. Mixed with red it works: the red carries the romance. And if she simply loves yellow, send yellow.
What does a single yellow rose mean?
Neither Victorian dictionary gives one yellow rose a meaning of its own. Both books do list “Rose, Single — Simplicity”, with no colour attached, though in a list of rose varieties that may mean a single-petalled rose rather than one stem. Read a single yellow rose as a small, friendly gesture: a thank-you, a well done, a thinking of you.
Do yellow roses mean death?
Not in either Victorian dictionary we checked. Their warnings about yellow were jealousy, infidelity and fading love, not death. For other flowers and their meanings, see our guide to flower meanings in South Africa.
What do orange roses mean?
Energy, enthusiasm and fascination: warmer than yellow and less loaded than red. Orange has no entry in either Victorian book; the meaning comes from modern guides. It suits congratulations and a bright birthday, not sympathy. Our orange rose range runs to 5 bouquets, from R269.95 to R649.95.
What does a peach rose mean?
Sincerity and gratitude, according to modern guides. Again, neither Victorian dictionary has an entry. In practice peach is hard to get wrong: warm enough for a mother, soft enough for a get-well bunch. We have 5 peach rose bouquets, from R349.95 to R699.95.
What do lilac, lavender and purple roses mean?
Modern guides give lilac and purple roses “enchantment” and “love at first sight”. Neither meaning appears in either Victorian dictionary, and neither book has a lilac, lavender or purple rose at all. The variety in the photograph below is called ‘Blue Moon’, yet to the eye it is lilac. See our purple and lilac roses: 8 bouquets, from R299.95 to R699.95.
What do cream roses mean?
Charm and elegance, in modern guides: white’s warmer cousin, without white’s strong link to sympathy. That makes cream a good anniversary rose for people who find red too much. Neither dictionary has an entry. We stock 6 cream rose bouquets, from R349.95 to R899.95.
What do red and white roses together mean?
This is the one colour combination either dictionary names: Greenaway lists “Rose, White and Red together — Unity.” The same page lists “Rose, York and Lancaster — War.” Today a mixed bouquet carries no single message, which is often exactly right. Our mixed rose bouquets number 16, from R299.95 to R899.95.
Do blue roses exist?
Not naturally. A 2007 study in Plant and Cell Physiology states the reason plainly: garden roses lack “violet to blue flower varieties due to the absence of delphinidin-based anthocyanins”, the pigments that make most blue and violet flowers blue, because roses lack the enzyme that produces them. The same researchers gave roses the missing enzyme with a gene from viola, swapped one of the rose’s own pigment genes for an iris version, and produced roses with “blue hues not achieved by hybridization breeding”. A vivid blue rose has been dyed. We do not sell blue roses; for the cool end of the range, choose lilac.
What the Victorians Actually Wrote
The “language of flowers” was a publishing craze. As California State University Northridge’s special collections put it, during the Victorian period in Britain and the United States there was a rise in popularity for the codification of culturally-created floral meanings in dictionary form. Note the word culturally-created: these were never fixed rules, and the dictionaries disagreed with each other.
We read two of them in full. Henrietta Dumont’s The Language of Flowers (Philadelphia, 1851) gives roses only three colours: red, white and yellow. Kate Greenaway’s Language of Flowers (London, 1884) has more than thirty entries headed “Rose” or “Rosebud”, almost all by variety rather than colour. Here is the page itself:
Three things stand out once you have the books open:
- The two books contradict each other on white. “I would be single” in 1851; “I am worthy of you” in 1884. Dumont’s book even contradicts itself: its main entries give the white rose as “I would be single” and the yellow rose as “Jealousy”, while the “Dictionary of Flowers” at the back of the same book lists “Rose, White — Silence” and “Rose, Yellow — Infidelity”.
- Yellow was bad news in both. Jealousy in one, “Decrease of love” in the other. Neither gives it today’s friendship meaning.
- Most of today’s colour meanings are in neither book. Pink, orange, peach, lilac, purple, cream and blue roses appear in neither.
What the Number of Roses Means
Search for the meaning of 7, 12 or 24 roses and you will find confident lists: one rose for love at first sight, twelve for “be mine”, and so on up to a hundred. None of those numbers appears in either Victorian dictionary. The only number-like entries we found are “Rose, Single — Simplicity”, which both books carry (and which may mean a single-petalled variety rather than one stem), and Greenaway’s “Rose, Full-blown, placed over two Buds — Secrecy.” The rest come from modern lists.
In practice bouquets come in set sizes. Here is what the product descriptions say about the stem counts of some in our catalogue:
| Number | Victorian dictionary | In our catalogue |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | “Rose, Single — Simplicity” | — |
| 1 open + 2 buds | “Secrecy” | — |
| 10, 20 or 30 | — | Heart Fluttering Red Roses Bouquet, sold in small (10 stems), medium (20) and large (30) |
| 12 | — | Mixed Pastel Roses In White Box: 12 stems, including pink, peach and purple roses (R699.95) |
| 30 | — | Simply Elegant Red Rose Arrangement: 30 stems of red roses (R899.95) |
| 100 | — | Hundred Red Roses In Glass Cylinder Vase (R4,299.95) |
What does it mean to give 7 roses?
Online lists say infatuation. Neither Victorian dictionary we read says anything about seven. If you want to send seven for a reason of your own, say so on the card: that is where the meaning will actually land.
What does a 12-rose bouquet mean?
A dozen is the classic romantic bouquet, and modern guides attach “be mine” to it. Neither Victorian dictionary mentions a dozen. A dozen red roses reads as the proper romantic gesture because of custom, not because the number carries a coded message.
What do 100 roses mean?
Complete devotion, according to the gift trade. Our biggest statement is the hundred red roses in a glass cylinder vase at R4,299.95: one hundred roses and seasonal greenery.
Which Colour for Which Occasion
Our suggestions, built on the modern meanings. The recipient’s favourite colour beats all of them.
| Occasion | Our suggestion |
|---|---|
| Valentine’s Day, anniversary | Red |
| New relationship | Pink |
| Friend’s birthday | Yellow |
| Mother’s Day, a mother’s birthday | Pink |
| Thank you | Peach |
| Get well | Yellow |
| Congratulations, new job | Orange |
| Sympathy, funeral | White |
| Wedding | White |
In South Africa the flower calendar peaks where you would expect. When the Mail & Guardian visited Johannesburg’s Multiflora flower auction in the run-up to Valentine’s Day 2017, its business relations manager told the paper that “Valentine’s Day is busy but Mother’s Day, Spring Day and Secretary Day are also big for us”, and the paper reported that “some exceptional red roses go for as much as R14 a stem” at that day’s auction. If you are ordering for Valentine’s Day or Mother’s Day, order early.
Colours That Send the Wrong Message
Worth a second thought:
- Yellow to a partner, on its own. Friendship today, “decrease of love” in 1884. Mix it with red or choose another colour.
- Red too early. A dozen red roses on a second date says more than most people mean. Pink or peach says “I like you” without the pressure.
- A wilting white rose. Greenaway’s entry for a withered white rose is “Transient impressions”. Fresh flowers matter; our guide on how long roses last explains how to keep them looking their best.
- Blue, expecting it to be natural. It is dye. Choose lilac if you want the cool end of the colour range.
Rose Colour FAQs
What do different colours of roses symbolise?
Today: red for romantic love, pink for admiration and gratitude, white for purity and remembrance, yellow for friendship, orange for enthusiasm, peach for sincerity, lilac for enchantment and cream for elegance. Only red, white and yellow appear in both Victorian dictionaries we checked.
Is a yellow rose romantic?
No. Today a yellow rose means friendship, and in the Victorian dictionaries it meant jealousy or “decrease of love”. For romance, send red or pink, or mix yellow with red.
What colour rose says “I love you”?
Red. Greenaway’s 1884 dictionary gives the rose simply as “Love”, and modern guides reserve red for romantic love.
What does a white rose symbolise?
Today, purity and remembrance, for weddings and sympathy alike. In 1851 Dumont gave the white rose as “I would be single”; in 1884 Greenaway gave it as “I am worthy of you”.
What does a 12-rose bouquet symbolise?
A dozen red roses is the classic romantic gesture, and modern guides attach “be mine” to it. Neither Victorian dictionary gives the number twelve any meaning.
What colours do roses come in?
Britannica says garden roses range “from white through various tones of yellow and pink to dark crimson and maroon”. Our catalogue also carries orange, peach, cream and lilac. There is no natural blue; blue roses are dyed.
Sending Roses in Cape Town
Choose the colour for the person, not the dictionary. If unsure, pink and peach are hardest to misread. Every colour in this guide is somewhere in our full rose collection.
From the florists
Pick the colour, then the bouquet.
Red, pink, white, yellow, orange, peach, lilac and cream roses for Cape Town delivery, priced from R199.95.
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Frequently asked
Quick answers
What do different colours of roses symbolise?
Today: red for romantic love, pink for admiration and gratitude, white for purity and remembrance, yellow for friendship, orange for enthusiasm, peach for sincerity, lilac for enchantment and cream for elegance. Only red, white and yellow appear in both Victorian dictionaries we checked.
Is a yellow rose romantic?
No. Today a yellow rose means friendship, and in the Victorian dictionaries it meant jealousy or “decrease of love”. For romance, send red or pink, or mix yellow with red.
What colour rose says “I love you”?
Red. Greenaway’s 1884 dictionary gives the rose simply as “Love”, and modern guides reserve red for romantic love.
What does a white rose symbolise?
Today, purity and remembrance, for weddings and sympathy alike. In 1851 Dumont gave the white rose as “I would be single”; in 1884 Greenaway gave it as “I am worthy of you”.
What does a 12-rose bouquet symbolise?
A dozen red roses is the classic romantic gesture, and modern guides attach “be mine” to it. Neither Victorian dictionary gives the number twelve any meaning.
What colours do roses come in?
Britannica says garden roses range “from white through various tones of yellow and pink to dark crimson and maroon”. Our catalogue also carries orange, peach, cream and lilac. There is no natural blue; blue roses are dyed.
