stig·ma (stĭg'mə) n.
pl.stig·ma·ta (stĭg-mä'tə, -māt'ə, stĭg'mə-) or stig·mas
A mark or token of infamy, disgrace, or reproach: "Party affiliation has never been more casual . . . The stigmata of decay are everywhere"(Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr.) See Synonyms at stain.
A small mark; a scar or birthmark.
Medicine A mark or characteristic indicative of a history of a disease or abnormality.
Psychology A mark or spot on the skin that bleeds as a symptom of hysteria.
stigmata Bodily marks, sores, or sensations of pain corresponding in location to the crucifixion wounds of Jesus, usually occurring during states of religious ecstasy or hysteria.
Biology A small mark, spot, or pore, such as the respiratory spiracle of an insect or an eyespot in certain algae.
Botany The receptive apex of the pistil of a flower, on which pollen is deposited at pollination.
Archaic A mark burned into the skin of a criminal or slave; a brand.
[Middle English stigme, brand, from Latin stigma, stigmat-, tattoo indicating slave or criminal status, from Greek, tattoo mark, from stizein, stig-, to prick; see steig- in Indo-European roots.] stig'mal adj.
(stĭg'mə) 