dittany
/ˈdɪtəni/ noun
Forms dittanies
- noun A labiate plant of species Origanum dictamnus, formerly renowned for its medicinal properties; dittany of Crete.
- noun A fragrant plant in the rue family, Dictamnus albus.
- noun False dittany (Pseudodictamnus mediterraneus, syn. Ballota pseudodictamnus)
- noun (US) A fragrant herb in the mint family native to the eastern United States (Cunila origanoides).
Synonyms
fraxinella, gas plant, burning bush common dittany, stone mint, frost mint, American dittany fraxinella burning bush gas plant Dictamnus alba
Etymology
From Old French ditan (French dictame), from Latin dictamnum, from Ancient Greek δίκταμνον (díktamnon), reportedly from Δίκτη (Díktē, “Dicte”), a mountain in Crete on whose slopes the plant grew.
Webster’s 1913
Etymology [OE. dytane, detane, dytan, OF. ditain, F. dictame, L. dictamnum, fr. Gr. Dicte in Crete. Cf. Dittander.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “dittany”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details