Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. An aromatic woolly plant (Origanum dictamnus) native to Crete, formerly believed to have magical powers.
- n. See stone mint.
- n. See gas plant.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. A common name in England for the plant Dictamnus albus.
- n. In the United States, Cunila Mariana, a fragrant labiate of the Atlantic States.
- n. A labiate, Origanum Dictamnus, the so-called dittany of Crete.
Wiktionary
- n. A labiate plant, Origanum dictamnus, formerly renowned for its medicinal properties; dittany of Crete.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. A plant of the Mint family (Origanum Dictamnus), a native of Crete.
- n. The Dictamnus Fraxinella. See dictamnus.
- n. In America, the Cunila Mariana, a fragrant herb of the Mint family.
WordNet 3.0
- n. Eurasian perennial herb with white flowers that emit flammable vapor in hot weather
Etymologies
- Middle English ditaine, from Old French ditan, from Latin dictamnus, from Greek diktamnon, perhaps after Mount Diktē (Dhíkti), a peak in eastern Crete.
Examples
“Since stags and hinds, when deeply wounded with darts, arrows, and bolts, if they do but meet the herb called dittany, which is common in Candia, and eat a little of it, presently the shafts come out and all is well again; even as kind”
Five books of the lives, heroic deeds and sayings of Gargantua and his son Pantagruel
“Since stags and hinds, when deeply wounded with darts, arrows, and bolts, if they do but meet the herb called dittany, which is common in Candia, and eat a little of it, presently the shafts come out and all is well again; even as kind Venus cured her beloved byblow Aeneas when he was wounded on the right thigh with an arrow by”
“Wild goats in Crete are said, when wounded by arrows, to go in search of dittany, which is supposed to have the property of ejecting arrows in the body.”
“But dittany, which is to be had in the woods all the while those insects remain in vigor, is a sure defence against them.”
“I had collected a pocketful of eyebright and dittany by the time they finished talking and Hugh Munro rose to go.”
“The snake hit you too, but I've cleaned the wound and put some dittany on it ...”
Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows
“They were wincing as they dabbed essence of dittany onto their many injuries.”
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
“Within minutes he was absorbed in the problem of whether the "dittanders" of Aelfric was, or was not, the same as his own "dittany".”
The Devil's Novice
“On the mountainsides, patches will flash up now and then, bright as dittany in July at the Zippo's ceremonial touch.”
Gravity's Rainbow
“They have their own medical lore: the goats of Candia cure their wounds by eating dittany, the tortoise purges itself by taking origanum.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘dittany’.
pjbaldes past tense response to questioning of non question: "oh no he didn't"
example: dittany he just steal my slim jim? Jun 19, 2010
chained_bear Usage on confectio Damocritis. Also on eyebright. Oct 15, 2008
bilby Right. Apr 15, 2008
reesetee Also called fraxinella or "gas plant." I think I'll pass.
Oh...sorry. That was horribly accidental. Apr 15, 2008
bilby Lol, love the definition. So much for sneaking out for a fag in the garden. Apr 15, 2008