nasturtium

nasturtium
\ \ [17] The nasturtium plant has a peppery taste (its immature flower buds are often used as an alternative to capers), and tradition has it that the Romans named it nasturtium because its pungency made them pucker up their noses. According to this theory, the word is an alteration of an earlier *nāsitortium, which would have been a compound formed from nāsusnose’ and tort-, the past participle stem of torquēretwist’ (source of English torture).

Word origins - 2ed. . 2005.

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  • Nasturtium — Nasturtium …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Nasturtium — may refer to: The plant genus Tropaeolum, commonly known as Nasturtium The plant genus Nasturtium, a kind of water cress This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an …   Wikipedia

  • Nasturtium — Nas*tur tium, n. [L. nasturtium, for nasitortium, fr. nasus nose + torquere, tortum, to twist, torture, in allusion to the causing one to make a wry face by its pungent taste. See {Nose} of the face, and {Torture}.] 1. (Bot.) A genus of… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • NASTURTIUM — in antecoeniis Veterum. Lamprid. in Heliogabalo, c. 20. Barbas sane mullorum tantas iubebat exhiberi, ut pro nasturtiis, apiastris et facelaribus et soeno graeco exhiberet plenis fabatariis ac discis. Et certe inter herbas, quae sapore acres sunt …   Hofmann J. Lexicon universale

  • nasturtium — (n.) mid 12c., plant of the mustard family, like watercress, from L. nasturtium cress; the popular etymology explanation of the name (Pliny) is that it is from L. *nasitortium, lit. nose twist, from nasus nose (see NOSE (Cf. nose) (n.)) + pp. of… …   Etymology dictionary

  • Nasturtĭum — (N. Br.), Pflanzengattung aus der Familie der Cruciferae Arabideae; 15. Kl. 2. Ordn. L.; Schote lineal od. elliptisch, Klappen convex od. ziemlich flach, nervenlos od. an der Basis mit Mittelnerv, Samen in jedem Fache ungleich zweireihig; Blumen… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Nasturtĭum — R. Br. (Brunnenkresse), Gattung der Kruziferen, ein oder mehrjährige, kahle oder behaarte Kräuter mit meist fiederteilig gezahnten Blättern, kleinen weißen oder gelben Blüten und linearischen oder elliptischen bis kugeligen Schoten. Über 50 Arten …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Nasturtium — Nasturtĭum R. Br., Pflanzengattg. der Kruziferen, Land oder Wasserpflanzen mit kleinen Blüten; am bekanntesten die Brunnenkresse (s.d.) …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

  • nasturtium — ► NOUN ▪ a trailing garden plant with round leaves and bright orange, yellow, or red flowers. ORIGIN Latin, apparently from naris nose + torquere to twist (referring to its pungent scent) …   English terms dictionary

  • nasturtium — [nə stʉr′shəm, nastʉr′shəm] n. [L, kind of cress < * nasitortium, lit., nose twist < nasus, NOSE + pp. of torquere, to turn, twist (see TORT): from the pungent odor of the plant] 1. any of a genus (Tropaeolum, family Tropaeolaceae) of… …   English World dictionary

  • Nasturtium — Nasturtium …   Wikipédia en Français

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