floribus

Floribus is a Latin form that functions as the dative plural and ablative plural of the noun flos, meaning flower. Flos is a masculine noun of the third declension; its principal parts are flos, floris, florum, and flores, with the dative/ablative plural floribus and the ablative singular flore.

As floribus appears in both dative and ablative uses, it can indicate various relations involving flowers. In the dative plural it means “to/for the flowers,” while in the ablative plural it can express means, manner, place, or accompaniment without a preposition. In phrases such as in floribus or per floribus, floribus conveys spatial or instrumental meaning, depending on the context.

In literary and historical Latin, floribus commonly occurs in descriptions of gardens, botany, or seasonal change, and it can pair with adjectives to characterize flowers or flowering periods. Its usage reflects the broader Latin habit of expressing plural reference to plant parts within descriptive or narrative passages.

Etymology and related terms: floribus derives from flos, with the root flor- appearing in many botanical and descriptive terms. The same root yields English derivatives such as flora, floral, and florid. The word traditionally appears in classical Latin as well as in modern botanical Latin, where it remains a standard plural form for “flowers.”

See also: flos (the singular form), flora, floral, botanical Latin.