carbuncle

English

A heraldic carbuncle.

Etymology

From Middle English carbuncle, charbocle, from Old French carbuncle, charbuncle, from Latin carbunculus (“a small coal; a reddish kind of precious stone; a kind of tumor”), diminutive of carbō (“a coal, charcoal”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈkɑː.bʌŋ.kl̩/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈkɑɹˌbʌŋ.kl̩/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Noun

carbuncle (plural carbuncles)

2. (archaic) A deep-red or fiery colored garnet or other dark red precious stone, especially when cut cabochon.
   • 1602, William Shakespeare, Hamlet, act II, scene 2, line 401:

     With eyes like carbuncles, the hellish Pyrrhus […]

   • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Isaiah 54:12:

     And I will make thy windows of agates, and thy gates of carbuncles, and all thy borders of pleasant stones.

   • 1634, Thomas Herbert, A Relation of Some Yeares Trauaile, Begunne Anno 1626. Into Afrique and the Greater Asia, especially the Territories of the Persian Monarchie: And some Parts of the Orientall Indies, and Iles Adiacent. Of their Religion, Language, Habit, Discent, Ceremonies, and other Matters Concerning Them: Together with the Proceedings and Death of the Three Late Ambassadours: Sir D. C[otton] Sir R. S[herley] and the Persian Nogdi-Beg: As also the Two Great Monarchs, the King of Persia, and the Great Mogol, London: William Stansby for Iacob Bloome, →OCLC; republished as William Foster, editor, Travels in Persia 1627–1629. Abridged and Edited by Sir William Foster [...] with an Introduction and Notes (Broadway Travellers), London: G. Routledge & Sons, 1928, →OCLC, page 79:

     His turban, or mandil [mandīl], was of finest white silk interwoven with gold, bestudded with pearl[s] and carbuncles; […]

   • 1936, Rollo Ahmed, The Black Art, London: Long, page 155:

     A piece of marigold or bay leaf was imbedded in the metal, and over it a carbuncle or chrysolite was placed.

   1. (heraldry) A charge or bearing supposed to represent the precious stone, with eight sceptres or staves radiating from a common centre; an escarbuncle.
4. (pathology) An abscess larger than a boil, usually with one or more openings draining pus onto the skin. It is usually caused by staphylococcal infection.
5. An unpopular or ugly building; an eyesore.

Related terms

• carbon

Translations

precious stone

• Bulgarian: гранат m (granat)
• Danish: karfunkel c
• Dutch: karbonkel (nl) m
• Erzya: мазыкев (mazikev)
• French: carboucle (fr) f
• Galician: carbúnculo m
• Georgian: ტოპაზი (ṭoṗazi)

  Old Georgian: ანთრაკი (antraḳi)

• German: Karfunkel (de) m
• Greek:

  Ancient: ἄνθραξ m (ánthrax)

• Hebrew: נֹפֶךְ (he) m (nófech)
• Irish: carrmhogal m
• Latin: carbunculus m
• Malay: batu merah
• Manx: carbuncle m
• Maori: kapakara
• Middle English: carbuncle
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: karfunkel (no) m

• Old French: carbuncle m
• Polish: karbunkuł (pl) m
• Scottish Gaelic: càrrmhogal m
• Spanish: carbunclo (es) m, carbúnculo (es) m
• Welsh: carbwncl m

abscess

• Bulgarian: цирей (bg) m (cirej)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 癰／痈 (zh) (yōng)

• Danish: brandbyld c, byld c
• Dutch: karbonkel (nl) m
• Finnish: ajospahka
• Galician: carbunco m, nacida m
• German: Karbunkel (de) m
• Greek: ψευδάνθρακας (el) m (psevdánthrakas)

  Ancient: ἄνθραξ m (ánthrax)

• Irish: carrmhogal m, carbuncal m
• Japanese: 癰 (ja) (よう, yō)
• Kazakh: көршиқан (körşiqan)
• Latin: carbunculus m
• Malay: bisul
• Manx: pluccan mooar m
• Maori: tāpoa, maiao
• Mi'kmaq: glmuej anim
• Middle English: carbuncle
• Old English: angset
• Polish: karbunkuł (pl) m
• Romanian: carbuncul n
• Russian: карбункул (ru) m (karbunkul)
• Scottish Gaelic: neasgaid f
• Swedish: böld (sv) c
• Welsh: carbwncl m, cornwyd m

See also

• ruby

References

• “carbuncle”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
• “carbuncle”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.

Middle English

Alternative forms

• carboncle, carbuncul, charbocle, charbokel, charbouncle, charbucle, charbukel, charbuncle, charbunkel

Etymology

Borrowed from Old French carbuncle, charbuncle, itself borrowed from Latin carbunculus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈkarbunkəl/, /ˈkarbukəl/, /ˈt͡ʃ-/

Noun

carbuncle (plural carbuncles)

1. A carbuncle (garnet or other precious stone)
   • 14th c. Geoffrey Chaucer, The Canterbury Tales. The Tale of Sir Thopas: 179-81.

     His sheeld was al of gold so reed,
     And ther-inne was a bores heed,

     A charbocle bisyde;

2. Material similar to carbuncle.
3. (pathology) A carbuncle; a large abscess.

Descendants

• English: carbuncle

References

• “carbuncle, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

Old French

Alternative forms

• charbuncle

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin carbunculus.

Noun

carbuncle oblique singular, m (oblique plural carbuncles, nominative singular carbuncles, nominative plural carbuncle)

1. carbuncle (deep-red or fiery colored garnet or other dark red precious stone)

Descendants

• → Middle English: carbuncle