AMARANTH

Meaning

An imaginary flower that does not wither.

Etymology

Origin: Latin

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *né Proto-Indo-European *n̥- Proto-Hellenic *ə- Ancient Greek ἀ- (a-) Ancient Greek μαραίνω (maraínō) Proto-Indo-European *-tós Proto-Hellenic *-tós Ancient Greek -τος (-tos) Ancient Greek ἀμάραντος (amárantos)der. Latin amarantusder. French amarantebor. ▲ Latin amarantusbor. English amaranth Borrowed from French amarante, or directly from its etymon Latin amarantus (the word ending influenced by plant names derived from Ancient Greek ἄνθος (ánthos, “a bloom, blossom, flower”)), from Ancient Greek ἀμάραντος (amárantos, “eternal, undying, unfading, unwilting; amaranth; everlasting flower”) (modern Greek αμάραντος (amárantos)), from ᾰ̓- (ă-, the alpha privativum, a prefix forming words having a sense opposite to the word or stem to which it is attached) + μαραίνω (maraínō, “to shrivel, wither”) + -τος (-tos, suffix forming adjectives).

Synonyms & Antonyms

NYT Puzzle Appearances

No published puzzle dates on file for this word yet. It is part of the official NYT Spelling Bee word list for 2019.