Lotus

9 definitions retrieved

Lotus \Lo"tus\ (l[=o]"t[u^]s), n. [L. lotus, Gr. lwto`s. Cf.
Lote.]

1. (Bot.)
(a) A name of several kinds of water lilies; as {Nelumbium
speciosum}, used in religious ceremonies, anciently in
Egypt, and to this day in Asia; Nelumbium luteum,
the American lotus; and Nymph[ae]a Lotus and
Nymph[ae]a c[ae]rulea, the respectively
white-flowered and blue-flowered lotus of modern
Egypt, which, with Nelumbium speciosum, are figured
on its ancient monuments.
(b) The lotus of the lotuseaters, probably a tree found in
Northern Africa, Sicily, Portugal, and Spain
(Zizyphus Lotus), the fruit of which is mildly
sweet. It was fabled by the ancients to make strangers
who ate of it forget their native country, or lose all
desire to return to it.
(c) The lote, or nettle tree. See Lote.
(d) A genus (Lotus) of leguminous plants much resembling
clover. [Written also lotos.]
[1913 Webster]

European lotus, a small tree (Diospyros Lotus) of
Southern Europe and Asia; also, its rather large bluish
black berry, which is called also the date plum.
[1913 Webster]

2. (Arch.) An ornament much used in Egyptian architecture,
generally asserted to have been suggested by the Egyptian
water lily.
[1913 Webster] Lotus-eater

lotus
n 1: native to eastern Asia; widely cultivated for its large
pink or white flowers [syn: lotus, Indian lotus,
sacred lotus, Nelumbo nucifera]

2: annual or perennial herbs or subshrubs [syn: Lotus, {genus
Lotus}]

3: white Egyptian lotus: water lily of Egypt to southeastern
Africa; held sacred by the Egyptians [syn: lotus, {white
lotus}, Egyptian water lily, white lily, {Nymphaea
lotus}]