amaranth

[ am-uh-ranth ]

noun
  1. an imaginary, undying flower.

  2. any plant of the genus Amaranthus, some species of which are cultivated as food and some for their showy flower clusters or foliage.: Compare amaranth family.

  1. the grain of certain Amaranthus species, used for food and noted as an important staple grain of the Aztecs.

  2. Chemistry. a purplish-red, water-soluble powder, C20H11N2O10Na3, an azo dye used chiefly to color pharmaceuticals, food, and garments.

Origin of amaranth

1
First recorded in 1545–55; from French amarante or New Latin amaranthus (genus name), from Latin amarantus (masculine noun), alteration of Greek amáranton “unfading flower,” noun use of neuter singular of amárantos “unfading, imperishable,” equivalent to a- a-6 (see an-1) + maran- (stem of maraínein “to fade”) + -tos verbal adjective suffix; -th- as if from Greek ánthos “flower”

Words Nearby amaranth

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use amaranth in a sentence

  • The spirit culls Unfaded amaranth, when wild it strays790 Through the old garden-ground of boyish days.

    Endymion | John Keats
  • Evie went half wild with joy about a certain crystal bath; I about the amaranth Room.

    The Debit Account | Oliver Onions

British Dictionary definitions for amaranth

amaranth

/ (ˈæməˌrænθ) /


noun
  1. poetic an imaginary flower that never fades

  2. any of numerous tropical and temperate plants of the genus Amaranthus, having tassel-like heads of small green, red, or purple flowers: family Amaranthaceae: See also love-lies-bleeding, tumbleweed, pigweed (def. 1)

  1. a synthetic red food colouring (E123), used in packet soups, cake mixes, etc

Origin of amaranth

1
C17: from Latin amarantus, from Greek amarantos unfading, from a- 1 + marainein to fade

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012