/keuh meel"yeuh, -mee"lee euh/ , n.
any of several shrubs of the genus Camellia, esp. C. japonica, native to Asia, having glossy evergreen leaves and white, pink, red, or variegated roselike flowers.
[ 1745-55; named after G. J. Camellus (1661-1706), Jesuit missionary, who brought it to Europe; see -IA ]