Chinese lanternChinese lanternn.1. A decorative collapsible lantern of thin, brightly colored paper.2. See winter cherry.3. See flowering maple.American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.Chinese lantern n 1. a collapsible lantern made of thin coloured paper 2. (Plants) an Asian solanaceous plant, Physalis franchetii, cultivated for its attractive orange-red inflated calyx. See also winter cherry Collins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014Chi?nese lan?tern n. a collapsible lantern of thin colored paper, often used for decorative lighting. [1815?25] Random House Kernerman Webster’s College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.