edelweiss

[eyd-l-vahys, -wahys] Origin

e·del·weiss

[eyd-l-vahys, -wahys]
noun
1.
a small composite plant, Leontopodium alpinum, having white woolly leaves and flowers, growing in the high altitudes of the Alps.
2.
a liqueur made in Italy, flavored with the extracts of alpine flowers.

Origin:
1860–65; < German, equivalent to edel noble + weiss white
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Edelweiss is always a great word to know.
So is ninnyhammer. Does it mean:
a screen or mat covered with a dark material for shielding a camera lens from excess light or glare.
a fool or simpleton; ninny.
Collins
World English Dictionary
edelweiss (ˈeɪdəlˌvaɪs)
 
n
a small alpine flowering plant, Leontopodium alpinum, having white woolly oblong leaves and a tuft of attractive floral leaves surrounding the flowers: family Asteraceae (composites)
 
[C19: German, literally: noble white]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

edelweiss
1862, from Ger., lit. "noble white," from O.H.G. edili "noble" (from P.Gmc. *ath(a)l-ja) + Ger. weiss "white."
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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