agnus castus
English edit
Etymology edit
From Ancient Greek ἄγνος (ágnos), confused with ἁγνός (hagnós, “chaste”); + by reinforcement Latin castus (“chaste”).
Noun edit
agnus castus (plural agnus castuses)
- A tree, Vitex agnus-castus, formerly believed to preserve chastity.
- 1624, Democritus Junior [pseudonym; Robert Burton], The Anatomy of Melancholy: […], 2nd edition, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Printed by John Lichfield and James Short, for Henry Cripps, →OCLC:, II.4.1.iii, 1813, Volume 2, page 94:
- […] some herbs provoke lust; some again, as agnus castus, waterlilly, quite extinguish seed […] .
Synonyms edit
Translations edit
chaste tree — see chaste tree
Further reading edit
- agnus castus on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
- Vitex agnus-castus on Wikispecies.Wikispecies