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Webster 1913 Edition


Thyme

Thyme

(tīm)
,
Noun.
[OE.
tyme
, L.
thymum
, Gr.
θύμον
,
θύμος
; cf.
θύειν
, to sacrifice,
θύοσ
a sacrifice, offering, incense: cf. F.
thym
; – perhaps so named because of its sweet smell. Cf.
Fume
,
Noun.
]
(Bot.)
Any plant of the labiate genus
Thymus
. The garden thyme (
Thymus vulgaris
) is a warm, pungent aromatic, much used to give a relish to seasoning and soups.
Ankle deep in moss and flowery
thyme
.
Cowper.
Cat thyme
,
a labiate plant (
Teucrium Marum
) of the Mediterranean religion. Cats are said to be fond of rolling on it.
J. Smith (Dict. Econ. Plants).
Wild thyme
,
Thymus Serpyllum
, common on banks and hillsides in Europe.
I know a bank where the
wild thyme
blows.
Shakespeare

Webster 1828 Edition


Thyme

THYME

,
Noun.
usually pronounced improperly time. [L. thymus.]
A plant of the genus Thymus. The garden thyme is a warm pungent aromatic,much used to give a relish to seasonings and soups.
Thymus. [Gr.] In anatomy, a glandular body, divided into lobes, situated behind the sternum in the duplicature of the mediastinum. It is largest in the fetus, diminishes after birth, and in adults often entirely disappears. It has no excretory duct, and its use is unknown. In calves it is called sweetbread.

Definition 2024


thyme

thyme

English

Noun

thyme (plural thymes)

  1. Any plant of the labiate genus Thymus, such as the garden thyme, Thymus vulgaris, a warm, pungent aromatic, that is much used to give a relish to seasoning and soups.

Usage notes

  • In older Irish and British poems and songs, the plant was sometimes seen as a metaphor for virginity and chastity.

Derived terms

Translations

References


Latin

Noun

thyme

  1. vocative singular of thymus