acanthus

== English == === Etymology === From Latin acanthus, from Ancient Greek ἄκανθος (ákanthos), from ἀκή (akḗ, “thorn”) + ἄνθος (ánthos, “flower”). === Pronunciation === (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /əˈkæn.θəs/ (General American) IPA(key): /əˈkæn.θəs/ Rhymes: -ænθəs === Noun === acanthus (plural acanthuses or acanthi) A member of the genus Acanthus of herbaceous prickly plants with toothed leaves, (family Acanthaceae, order Lamiales (formerly Scrophulariales)) found in the south of Europe, Asia Minor, and India. [from mid 16th century] Synonyms: bear's breech, bear's breeches, (rare) bear's-breech (architecture) An ornament resembling the foliage or leaves of Acanthus spinosus, used in the capitals of the Corinthian and composite orders. [from mid 18th century] ==== Translations ==== === See also === acantha Acanthis === References === “acanthus”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC. == Latin == === Etymology === From Ancient Greek ἄκανθος (ákanthos), from ἀκή (akḗ, “thorn”) + ἄνθος (ánthos, “flower”). === Pronunciation === (Classical Latin) IPA(key): [aˈkan.tʰʊs] (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA(key): [aˈkan.tus] === Noun === acanthus m (genitive acanthī); second declension A plant known as bear's-foot (Helleborus foetidus). A thorny evergreen tree. (Can we verify(+) this sense?) thorn, spine, prickle ==== Declension ==== Second-declension noun. ==== Descendants ==== === References === “acanthus”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891), An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers “acanthus”, in The Perseus Project (1999), Perseus Encyclopedia‎[1] “acanthus”, in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898), Harper’s Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers “acanthus”, in William Smith, editor (1848), A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology, London: John Murray “acanthus”, in William Smith, editor (1854, 1857), A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography, volume 1 & 2, London: Walton and Maberly