myrtlen.
/ˈməːtl/, U.S. /ˈmərd(ə)l/ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > trees and shrubs > tree or shrub groups > myrtles > [noun] > myrtle-berry
myrtlea1400
myrtle berry?a1500
muntry1847
the world > food and drink > food > fruit and vegetables > fruit or a fruit > berry > [noun] > bilberry or myrtleberry
blackberrylOE
myrtlea1400
hurtleberryc1460
myrtle berry?a1500
hurt1542
blaeberry1562
whortleberry1578
bilberry1584
blue1587
hurtle1597
hurtberrya1661
frawn1726
ohelo1825
a1400 tr. Lanfranc Sci. Cirurgie (Ashm.) (1894) 53 Poudre of mirtillis.
c1475 ( Surg. Treat. in MS Wellcome 564 f. 78v (MED) Anoynte al þe place aboute þat is brusid..with hoot oile of rosis and caste þer vp on þe poudre of mirtill.
1526 Grete Herball cclxvi. sig. Piiv1 Mirte is a lytell tre so called, ye which tre bereth a fruite that is named Myrtylles.
1578 H. Lyte tr. R. Dodoens Niewe Herball 462 Barley giuen with Mirtels, or wine,..stoppeth the running of the belly.
1657 W. Coles Adam in Eden lxxi. 135 Being boyled in red Wine with Pomegranat Rinds, and Myrtills, it stayeth the Lask.
1671 J. Sharp Midwives Bk. vi. vii. 381 Give sirrup of dried roses, Quinces, Myrtles, Currants, Coral, Mastick, Harts-horn, or powder of Myrtles.
1732 T. Lediard tr. J. Terrasson Life Sethos II. x. 426 Boxes of myrtles and oranges.
2.
a. Any of various evergreen shrubs or small trees of the genus Myrtus (family Myrtaceae) or formerly included in it; esp. (more fully common myrtle) M. communis, of the Mediterranean region, which has shiny, dark green, leathery, toothless, aromatic leaves and fragrant white flowers, and which is often grown for ornament or for its fragrance. Also, with distinguishing word: any of various varieties of myrtle, esp. the common myrtle.The myrtle was held sacred to the goddess Venus and used as an emblem of love: cf. sense 3.
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the world > plants > particular plants > trees and shrubs > tree or shrub groups > myrtles > [noun]
myrt?a1200
myrt-treea1382
mirtusc1384
myrtine?a1450
myrtle tree1548
myrtle1562
nerte1585
Australian tea1728
Bencoolen tea1728
New Zealand tea1728
Scotch gale1795
Callistemon1814
manuka1832
myrtal1846
mangrove-myrtle1847
swamp tea tree1862
lid-flower1866
Barringtonia1871
tea-broom1872
kanuka1906
myrtle-of-the-river1919
1562 W. Turner 2nd Pt. Herball f. 60v Dioscorides maketh ii. sortes of sowen or set myrtel trees... But other writers make yet mo kyndes of Myrtilles.
1593 E. Spenser Elegie in Phœnix Nest 1 Alcides speckled poplar tree..And Phillis philbert there away, Comparde with mirtle and the bay.
1597 J. Gerard Herball iii. 1226 Another kinde of Myrtill, called Myrtus minor, or noble Myrtill.
1611 Bible (King James) Isa. xli. 19 I will plant in the wildernes..the Myrtle, and the Oyle tree. View more context for this quotation
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost iv. 262 The fringed Bank with Myrtle crownd. View more context for this quotation
1724 J. Henley et al. tr. Pliny the Younger Epist. & Panegyrick I. v. vi. 220 The Soil will not favour the Myrtle, the Olive, and other Plants, that love a constant Warmth.
1753 Chambers's Cycl. Suppl. at Myrtus The broad-leaved Roman Myrtle.
1768 T. Pennant Brit. Zool. (new ed.) II. ii. 255 Myrtles flourish in the open air during the whole year.
1785 W. Cowper Task iii. 570 The spiry myrtle with unwith'ring leaf.
1846 J. Lindley Veg. Kingdom 737 Even the berries of the common Myrtle are esteemed in the Greek Archipelago, especially a sort with white fruit.
1864 Ld. Tennyson Islet 19 Fairily-delicate palaces shine Mixt with myrtle and clad with vine.
1904 E. Wharton Ital. Villas vi. 214 The box-parterres have been replaced by star-shaped beds of begonias and cinerarias, and the groves of laurel and myrtle by thickets of pampas-grass and bamboo.
1956 G. Durrell My Family & other Animals (1959) iii. 42 A maze of blackbird-haunted myrtles.
1973 W. J. Bean Trees & Shrubs Hardy in Brit. Isles (ed. 8) II. 763 Myrtus x ralphii..Described by J. D. Hooker as a species near to M. bullata, this myrtle is now considered to be a variable natural hybrid between that species and M. abcordata.
1992 Holiday Which? May 142/2 The Galluran interior is studded with craggy, jagged mountains carpeted in an impenetrable blanket of gorse, juniper, thyme and myrtle.
b. Chiefly with distinguishing word: any of various shrubs of other genera of the family Myrtaceae, or of several unrelated families, thought to resemble the common myrtle in their fragrance, their evergreen leaves, etc.crape-, fringe-, honey-, sand myrtle, etc.: see the first element.
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the world > plants > particular plants > trees and shrubs > tree or shrub groups > myrtles > [noun] > name applied to various types of myrtle
myrtle1578
Jew's myrtle1775
tea tree1790
1578 H. Lyte tr. R. Dodoens Niewe Herball vi. xiii. 674 This herbe is called..in English, Kneeholme,..and Petigree, also we may cal it ye wilde Myrtel.
1607 E. Topsell Hist. Foure-footed Beastes 132 The seede of blacke mirtle.
1843 W. Baxter Brit. Phænogamous Bot. VI. 474 Ruscus aculeatus. Prickly Butcher's Broom... Wild Myrtle. Prickly Petigree.
1852 G. C. Mundy Our Antipodes I. ii. 76 The South Sea myrtle, or Leptospernum [recte Leptospermum].
1920 B. Cronin Timber Wolves 21 It was of polished red myrtle, every grain as smooth and sound as a bell. That comes from Tasmania.
1992 Sky Mag. (Delta Airlines) Dec. 34 Visitors to the National Japanese Bonsai Collection find a profusion of tiny Japanese black pines, crape myrtles, [etc.].
c. Now usually with distinguishing word: any of several shrubs of the genus Myrica (family Myricaceae), noted for their aromatic leaves; esp. (more fully bog myrtle, Dutch myrtle, etc.) the sweet gale, M. gale, and (more fully candleberry-myrtle, wax-myrtle) M. cerifera.
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the world > plants > particular plants > trees and shrubs > shrubs > myrica and allies > [noun]
galec1000
Dutch myrtle1597
sweet willow1597
gow1598
sweet-gale1640
candle-tree1692
candleberry tree1731
tallow shrub1770
myrica1791
wax-tree1791
wax-plant1801
wax-myrtle1813
Comptonia1823
tallow-bush1835
wax-berry1835
sweet fern1849
bog myrtle1866
meadow fern1876
flea-wood1892
1597 J. Gerard Herball iii. 1228 Myrtus Brabantica..Gaule, sweete Willow, or Dutch Myrtle tree.
1597 J. Gerard Herball iii. 1228 Gaule or the wilde Myrtle.
1634 W. Wood New Englands Prospect i. v. 13 In the Woods, without eyther the art or the helpe of man,..[grow] Mirtle, Saxifarilla, Bayes, &c.
1705 R. Beverley Hist. Virginia ii. 22 The Myrtle, bearing a Berry, of which they make a hard brittle wax.
1797 Encycl. Brit. XII. 573/2 Broad leaved Dutch myrtle, with spear-shaped, sharp pointed, dark-green leaves.
1826 N. T. Carrington Dartmoor 176 Holne Chace..in swampy spots abounding with the myrica gale or Devonshire myrtle.
1866 J. Lindley & T. Moore Treasury Bot. II. 770/1 M[yrica] Gale, the Sweet Gale or Bog Myrtle, and the badge of the Campbells.
1897 G. B. Sudworth Nomencl. Arborescent Flora U.S. 117 Myrica californica... Myrtle.
1910 Encycl. Brit. I. 805/1 Myricaceae, bog myrtle.
1984 P. Matthiessen Indian Country ii. 60 A short-eared owl rose from a low bush and flopped away over the green wall of salt bush and wax myrtle.
1994 A. Cleave Field Guide Trees Brit., Europe & N. Amer. 132/1 Myrtle Myrica faya... A native of some of the Atlantic islands where it occurs in the drier zones of broad-leaved evergreen forests.
d. Australian. More fully Tasmanian myrtle or Australian myrtle, myrtle beech. A tall tree of Victoria and Tasmania, Nothofagus cunninghamii (family Fagaceae), with small, shiny, dark green leaves; the wood of this tree.
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1816 Hobart Town Gaz. 15 June The Mountains on the Northern Shore where the Coal is, are barren, but the rest are generally covered with Myrtle.
1832 J. Backhouse Narr. Visit Austral. Colonies (1843) 48 Myrtle, allied to Beech, but with leaves more like Dwarf Birch, is suited for keels.
1877 Illustr. Austral. News (Melbourne) 3 Sept. 138/1 The most luxuriant growth of forest vegetation, such as the myrtle (fagus cunninghamii).
1957 Forest Trees Austral. (Commonwealth Forestry & Timber Bureau) 220 Celery top pine occurs in cool temperate rain forest..with myrtle beech.
1971 F. H. Titmuss Commerc. Timbers World (ed. 4) 209 The Tasmanian Myrtle, also known as Myrtle Beech or Australian Myrtle, is a hardwood, the timber of Nothofagus cunninghamii... Tasmanian Myrtle works reasonably well, whether by hand or by machine.
1985 Mercury (Hobart) 30 July 14/5 Myrtle wilt, a fungus, killed myrtle, Nothofagus cunninghamii, the predominant species in Tasmanian rainforest, in much the same way as the infamous Dutch elm disease.
e. U.S. Any of several plants that are thought to resemble the common myrtle in some way, esp. (a) the lesser periwinkle, Vinca minor (also †trailing myrtle, running myrtle); (b) any of several kinds of Ceanothus (family Rhamnaceae); (c) the California laurel, Umbellularia californica (family Lauraceae); (also) the wood of this tree.
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the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular timber trees or shrubs > [noun] > other timber trees
jasmine-wood1712
fiddlewood1714
loblolly tree1750
rosewood1755
loblolly-wood1756
horn-beech1771
hop hornbeam1785
olive wood1866
myrtle1880
pounce tree1884
rosebush1889
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular cultivated or ornamental plants > foliage, house, or garden plants > [noun] > periwinkle
sengreenc1000
periwinkleOE
clematis1551
pervenche1845
vinca1868
myrtle1880
the world > plants > particular plants > trees and shrubs > shrubs > non-British shrubs > [noun] > North-American > ceanothus or red-root
redroot1709
Jersey tea1759
New Jersey tea1759
New Jersey tea1760
spirit weed1864
myrtle1880
ceanothus1882
buck's-eye1883
red-heart1911
1880 C. E. Bessey Botany xx. 504 Among the cultivated plants..are Vinca sp., Periwinkle or, as it is erroneously called, Trailing Myrtle.
1884 C. S. Sargent Rep. Forests N. Amer. (10th Census IX) 41 Ceanothus thyrsifolius... Blue Myrtle.
1897 G. B. Sudworth Nomencl. Arborescent Flora U.S. 203 Umbellularia californica... Myrtle (Oreg.)
1908 B. L. Robinson & M. L. Fernald Gray's New Man. Bot. (ed. 7) 662 V. minor L. (Common P[eriwinkle], ‘Myrtle.’) Spreading by creeping stems.
1937 Range Plant Handbk. (U.S. Forest Service) b39 Probably the names in most general use [for Ceanothus species] have been bluebush (or bluebrush), buckbrush, lilac, and myrtle.
1976 S. M. Gault Dict. Shrubs in Colour 206/2 [Vinca] minor Lesser Periwinkle, Running-Myrtle (U.S.) to 46 cm.
1996 in Dict. Amer. Regional Eng. III. 747/2 In Oregon..one of the biggest products of the tourist trade was salad bowls made of myrtle—what I..would have called California bay.
f. myrtle-of-the-river n. a large evergreen shrub of tropical America, Calyptranthes syzygium (family Myrtaceae).
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the world > plants > particular plants > trees and shrubs > tree or shrub groups > myrtles > [noun]
myrt?a1200
myrt-treea1382
mirtusc1384
myrtine?a1450
myrtle tree1548
myrtle1562
nerte1585
Australian tea1728
Bencoolen tea1728
New Zealand tea1728
Scotch gale1795
Callistemon1814
manuka1832
myrtal1846
mangrove-myrtle1847
swamp tea tree1862
lid-flower1866
Barringtonia1871
tea-broom1872
kanuka1906
myrtle-of-the-river1919
1919 Ann. Rep. Board of Regents Smithsonian Inst. 1917 384 The myrtle-of-the-river..with opposite glossy leaves and clusters of fruit resembling blueberries.
1924 J. A. Thomson Sci. Old & New v. 27 Even the names transport us into a land of pure delight—the paradise tree, the myrtle-of-the-river, the marlberry, and the bois-fidèle.
1998 Audubon Mar. 18/2 Gumbo-limbo, inkwood, myrtle-of-the-river, darling plum: The names of the trees suggest the tangled beauty of the hammocks.
3. A garland, wreath, or spray of myrtle, regarded as a symbol of love, peace, honour, etc. Also figurative.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > love > amorous love > [noun] > god or goddess of love > love emblem held sacred to Venus
myrtle1567
1567 G. Turberville Epitaphes, Epigrams f. 143 Rent off those Garlands greene, doe Lawrell Leaues away, Remooue the Myrtell from your browes and stint on strings to play.
1567 G. Turberville tr. Ovid Heroycall Epist. 91 Ne Pelops was the Syre of Priam, that with blood Of Oenamus imbrude his handes, and Mirtill drencht in flood.
1592 Countess of Pembroke tr. R. Garnier Antonius i. sig. F3 Since then the Baies so well thy forehead knewe To Venus mirtles yeelded haue their place.
c1602 C. Marlowe tr. Ovid Elegies iii. i. sig. D6v Erre I? or mirtele in her right hand lyes.
1639 S. Du Verger tr. J.-P. Camus Admirable Events 14 The palmes of my valour, and mirtles of my incomparable love.
1658 Sir T. Browne Hydriotaphia: Urne-buriall iii. 37 The urn of Philopoemen was so laden with flowers and ribbons, that it afforded no sight of itself. The rigid Lycurgus allowed olive and myrtle.
1723 J. Barker Patch-work Screen for Ladies Introd. sig. av Those Arms, that have crown'd the Hero with Lawrels, and the Lover with Myrtles.
1785 S. J. Pratt Misc. II. 49 Forgive the Poet, if his tuneful care Attempts this once a sacred wreath to wear; If on this serious day he tries his art To win th' immortal myrtle—of the heart.
1807 C. I. M. Dibdin Mirth & Metre 236 Tho' grateful the much envy'd laurel of fame, Much dearer's the myrtle of love.
1863 ‘G. Eliot’ Romola I. iv. 69 If thou art in a classical vein, put myrtle about his curls and make him a young Bacchus.
a1924 T. W. H. Crosland Last Poems (1928) 104 You who have..worn upon a brow with myrtle fleckt The steely diadem of the intellect.
1990 J. Heath-Stubbs Game of Love & Death 25 The Greek and wine-dark wave Laments him still. Let myrtles deck his English grave.
ΘΚΠ
the world > physical sensation > use of drugs and poison > tobacco > snuff > [noun] > types of
high-dried1681
Spanish1681
roderigo1692
bergamot1701
musty1709
myrtle1715
Portuguesea1721
rappee?1726
Scotch1739
macoubac1740
blackguard1782
Irish1806
Lundyfoot1811
prince's mixture1813
cephalic1828
taddy1869
1715 London Gaz. No. 5394/4 Neat Mirtle Barcelona, at 1 s. per Ounce.
5. A deep shade of green. See also myrtle green n. at Compounds 2.
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the world > matter > colour > named colours > green or greenness > [noun] > shade or tint of green > other greens
beech-greenc1450
frost on green1559
sap1572
apple green1648
sap-green1686
myrtle green1717
Brunswick green1790
pistachio1791
pistachio green1793
mountain green1794
lettuce green1834
copper-green1843
canard1872
myrtle1872
leaf-green1880
cress-green1883
cresson1883
watercress green1883
lizard-green1897
jade1921
apple1923
laurel1923
mango1930
laurel-green1938
lettuce1963
mint1967
1872 Young Englishwoman Nov. 599/1 Sombre greens,..chasseur, or hunter's-green, myrtle, cypress.
1884 Christian World 17 Jan. 52/1 Very rich Brocaded Plush..in Myrtle.
1923 Daily Mail 16 Jan. 1 (advt.) Chiffon velveteen robe... Colours: grey,..ruby, myrtle, navy or black.
1939–40 Army & Navy Stores Catal. 662/2 Motor-rugs... Reversible colours... Myrtle/Apple.
Compounds
C1.
a.
myrtle band n.
ΚΠ
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost ix. 431 Them she upstaies Gently with Mirtle band . View more context for this quotation
1797 C. Smith Elegiac Sonnets 84 Time's inexorable sway Has torn the myrtle bands away.
1865 E. Caswall May Pageant 74 Their foreheads filleted with myrtle bands.
myrtle bark n.
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1864 Chambers's Encycl. VI. 641/2 Myrtle bark is used for tanning in many parts of the south of Europe.
myrtle-blossom n.
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1792 H. Cowley Day in Turkey iii. i. 35 Here is a sweet woman who pines and sighs till she puts one in mind of a myrtle blossom, all paleness and fragrance.
1817 P. B. Shelley Laon & Cythna iii. xxxiv. 74 The myrtle blossoms starring the dim grove.
1874 Appletons' Jrnl. 31 Jan. 149/2 If we had had violets, we should not have had oleanders nor myrtle-blossoms.
myrtle-bough n.
ΚΠ
1586 W. Warner Albions Eng. iv. xxii. 100 Fatall wreathes of Myrtell boughes were sacred vnto Dys.
1781 W. Cowper Anti-Thelypthora 174 His steed..Whose bridle..Hung not far off upon a myrtle bough.
1859 L. C. Shore Gemma of Isles iv. iv. 77 This flashing crown of argent, mixed With living bloom from the bride's myrtle bough!
1912 Catholic Encycl. XIV. 426/1 On the eighth day a procession went seven times around the altar, the people carrying myrtle-boughs and palms.
myrtle bower n.
ΚΠ
1621 M. Wroth Countesse of Mountgomeries Urania iv. 591 In my armes I tooke him then vnharm'd, Carrying him safe vnto a Myrtle bowre.
1640 T. Carew Poems 128 Let us that in myrtle bowers sit Vnder secure shades use the benefit Of peace and plenty.
1785 W. Cowper Task ii. 215 Ausonia's..myrtle bow'rs.
1876 Ladies' Repository Jan. 34/1 Far above the orange and myrtle bowers.., Mohammed Al-hamar upreared the Medinet Alhambra.
myrtle branch n.
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1595 H. Chettle Piers Plainnes Prentiship sig. E3 Wilt thou nowe present Venus with myrtle branches?
1611 Bible (King James) Neh. viii. 15 Pine branches, and Myrtle branches . View more context for this quotation
1818 New S. Wales Mag. (Sydney) (1834) 2 59 We agreed to..rest for the night in our native gunnya, or bower, formed of myrtle-branches.
1845 Southern Literary Messenger 11 687/1 The manner in which the song was recited.., the myrtle branch passing round among those who occupied the first place on each couch.
myrtle-bud n.
ΚΠ
1738 S. Boyse Transl. & Poems 144 Protected, here the Myrtle-Buds may bloom.
1820 P. B. Shelley Fiordispina 47 Rods of myrtle-buds and lemon-blooms.
1860 H. Timrod Poems 1 Do you recall..A simple basket filled with flowers, All favorites of our Southern bowers?.. One was a snowy myrtle-bud.
myrtle bush n.
ΚΠ
1558 T. Phaer tr. Virgil Seuen First Bks. Eneidos iii. 49 With roddes vpright & braunches thick a myrtyl bushe ther grew.
1605 J. Sylvester tr. G. de S. Du Bartas Deuine Weekes & Wks. ii. i. 329 Th'Elme and the Vine, th'Oliue and Mirtle-bush.
1894 T. Martin Madonna Pia i. 27 The thrush is piping from his myrtle bush.
1991 R. Border Tooth & Claw (BNC) 21 The wolf's yellow eyes shone, and he ran into the myrtle bushes, pulled Bertha out, and ate her.
myrtle crown n.
ΚΠ
1709 W. King Art of Love (new ed.) xi. 133 A Myrtle Crown with Victory attends Those who are Cupid's and Dione's Friends.
1813 W. Scott Bridal of Triermain i. xvi. 40 One wreathed them with a myrtle crown.
1865 J. Ruskin Sesame & Lilies ii. 185 Before the myrtle crown, and the stainless sceptre, of womanhood.
1874 Overland Monthly Dec. 490/2 A heavy myrtle crown adorned the brow of Beethoven.
myrtle flower n.
ΚΠ
1671 J. Sharp Midwives Bk. vii. xxii. 405 Take..Roses, and Myrtle flowers, of each half a handful.
?1793 S. T. Coleridge Lines Autumnal Evening 52 Love..in Joy's red nectar dips His myrtle flower.
1865 Ladies' Repository Nov. 677/1 The blue myrtle flowers are past; soon all forms of vegetation will droop.
1901 K. L. Parker in M. Muir My Bush Bk. (1982) 101 The dark green thick foliage of the bumbles..of which the blossom is like a gigantic myrtle flower.
myrtle-flower water n.
ΚΠ
1684 R. Waller tr. Ess. Nat. Exper. Acad. del Cimento 85 Mirtle Flower water.
1869 A. S. Wright Wright's Bk. 3000 Pract. Receipts 174 Myrtle-flower Water. Myrtle flowers, 30 pounds; water, 13 gallons. Draw over 10 gallons.
myrtle grove n.
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1593 W. Shakespeare Venus & Adonis sig. Fiij This sayd, she hasteth to a mirtle groue . View more context for this quotation
1715 C. Cibber Venus & Adonis 20 They Rival's shifted to the Myrtle Grove, Like a Believing Lover.
1908 Westm. Gaz. 12 Feb. 2/3 The Garden and the Myrtle Grove Are throbbing with expectancy Of new-found Life, and new-born Love.
myrtle leaf n.
ΚΠ
1583 P. Barrough Methode of Phisicke v. xix. 245 That instrument made to the forme of a mirtle leafe..which the Greekes call scolopomacherion.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Antony & Cleopatra (1623) iii. xii. 9 The Morne-dew on the Mertle leafe . View more context for this quotation
1688 R. Holme Acad. Armory iii. xii. 437/1 The Mirtle Leaf Pen-Knife, it is a Pen-Knife with two edges, resembling a Mirtle Leaf, or rather a Javeline head.
1849 M. Arnold Mod. Sappho 49 Hast thou with myrtle-leaf crown'd him, O Pleasure?
1992 A. Bell tr. M. Toussaint-Samat Hist. Food xiii. 422 Mortadella, in Rabelais' day, was an Italian sausage stuffed with a mixture containing myrtle leaves.
myrtle shade n.
ΚΠ
1596 B. Griffin Fidessa iii. sig. B2 Venus, and yong Adonis sitting by her, Vnder a Myrtle shade.
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Æneis vi, in tr. Virgil Wks. 380 The Souls, whom that unhappy Flame invades, In secret Solitude, and Myrtle Shades, Make endless Moans.
1885 E. R. B. Lytton Glenaveril 179 Where dwells my mate within the myrtle shade.
myrtle shrub n.
ΚΠ
1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues Meurte sauvage, the wild Mirtle tree, or Mirtle shrub.
1823 M. W. Shelley Valperga I. xii. 236 She looked up; and..perceived Castruccio, with one hand grasping a myrtle shrub, leaning from the summit of the precipice.
1885 J. E. Barlas Queen of Hid Isle ii. i. 37 Here will I hide me 'mid these myrtle shrubs.
myrtle-spray n.
ΚΠ
1595 R. S. tr. Amorous Contention Phillis & Flora in G. Chapman Ouids Banquet of Sence sig. H3v The sweet-breathd winds conuay Odors from euery Mirtle spray.
1876 J. Todhunter Laurella 139 A dove that flew back o'er the sea, With a pale myrtle-spray from the wan Eulalie.
myrtle sprig n.
ΚΠ
1638 W. Davenant Madagascar 50 The Mirtle Sprig (that never can decay) I had not knowne.
1776 S. J. Pratt Pupil of Pleasure (1777) I. 46 Catching up a myrtle-sprig, [I] kept it, sportingly, as if to conceal a new sigh.
1820 P. B. Shelley Œdipus Tyrannus i. i. 7 Under your mighty ancestors, we pigs Were bless'd as nightingales on myrtle sprigs.
1871 R. Browning Balaustion 105 Then he crowns with myrtle sprigs His head.
myrtle twig n.
ΚΠ
1595 L. B. in E. Spenser Astrophel sig. H3 Sweet bowres of Myrtel twigs and Lawrel faire.
1601 P. Holland tr. Pliny Hist. World I. xv. xxix Rings made of Myrtle twigs.
1785 S. J. Pratt Misc. II. 101 A Cypress bough and Myrtle twig.
1990 T. Ruprecht Toronto's Many Faces 233 During the synagogue service, a palm branch, myrtle twigs and willow branches are held in the right hand and an ethrog (citron) in the left.
myrtle walk n.
ΚΠ
1657 Bp. H. King Poems, Elegies, Paradoxes & Sonnets 34 Mad-men..mid'st the silent shades, and Myrtle walks, Pule and do penance for their Mistress faults.
1802 S. T. Coleridge Picture 27 No myrtle-walks are these.
1881 T. Woolner Pygmalion viii. 118 In the myrtle walks..I felt but a shagged mountain bear that strove to woo a great-eyed fawn.
myrtle wand n.
ΚΠ
1600 J. Weever tr. Juvenal First Satyre in Favnvs & Melliflora sig. Iv Uenus naked, holding in her hand..a mirtle wand.
1645 J. Milton On Christ's Nativity: Hymn iii, in Poems 3 And waving wide her mirtle wand.
1777 R. Polwhele Fate of Lewellyn 50 Concord wav'd his myrtle wand.
1914 K. L. Bates Chaucer's Canterbury Pilgrims iii. 84 An altar stood below: on either hand A priest with roses crowned, who held a myrtle wand.
b.
myrtle-covered adj.
ΚΠ
1843 Blackwood's Edinb. Mag. Mar. 328 The first house in the village—the prettiest of the half dozen myrtle-covered cottages before alluded to.
1888 New Eng. Mag. Aug. 369 The myrtle-covered yard.
1986 Highland News 27 Sept. 22/1 Myrtle-covered crags, and sweet, clear upland burns.
C2. † myrtle bilberry n. Obsolete rare the bilberry, Vaccinium myrtillus.† myrtleblooms n. Obsolete rare (J. Lindley's name for) plants of the family Myrtaceae.† myrtle candle n. Obsolete rare a candle made of myrtle wax.† myrtle thrush n. [apparently an isolated attestation, translating French (see quot.)] Obsolete rare a kind of bird (not identified).
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1849 Rural Cycl. III. 538/1 Myrtle Bilberry,—botanically Vaccinium Myrtillus.
myrtle bird n. = myrtle warbler n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > birds > order Passeriformes (singing) > arboreal families > family Parulidae (wood warbler) > [noun] > genus Dendroica > dendroica coronata (yellow-rump)
yellow-rump1731
myrtle bird1810
myrtle warbler1892
1810 A. Wilson Amer. Ornithol. II. 139 Thro the..lower parts of the Carolinas, wherever the myrtles grew, these birds were numerous... In those parts of the country they are generally known by the name of Myrtle-birds.
1857 H. D. Thoreau Jrnl. 21 Oct. in Writings (1906) X. iii. 113 I see many myrtle-birds now about the house.
1937 Sci. Monthly Sept. 244/2 The yellow-rumped warbler..is now generally known as myrtle-bird, due to the fact that in winter it feeds in large flocks on the fruit of the bayberry bushes of the southern coast-region.
1975 Globe & Mail (Toronto) 30 Apr. 41 The myrtlebird is large, as warblers go, being almost as big as a house sparrow.
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1846 J. Lindley Veg. Kingdom 718 To Myrtleblooms and Melastomads they [sc. Myrobalans] are related through Memecylon.
1866 J. Lindley & T. Moore Treasury Bot. II. 773/2 Myrtleblooms, Lindley's name for the Myrtaceæ.
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the world > matter > light > artificial light > an artificial light > candle > [noun] > wax candle > made of specific type of wax
myrtle candle1791
1791 T. Jefferson in Harper's Mag. (1885) Mar. 535/2 Myrtle candles of last year out.
myrtle flag n. rare the plant sweet flag, Acorus calamus.
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the world > plants > particular plants > plants and herbs > a grass or grasses > reedy or aquatic grasses > [noun] > sweet flag
beeworteOE
sweet calamusa1398
acorus?a1425
acorum1601
sweet rush1607
sweet cane1611
sweet smelling flag1640
sweet flag1790
myrtle flag1796
myrtle grass1796
flag-root1851
myrtle sedge1857
sweet sedge1857
1796 W. Withering Arrangem. Brit. Plants (ed. 3) II. 344 Myrtle Flag. Sweet Smelling Flag, or Calamus.
1886 J. Britten & R. Holland Dict. Eng. Plant-names 350 Myrtle Flag.., Myrtle-grass.., or Myrtle Sedge.., Book-names for Acorus Calamus L., in allusion to its scent.
myrtle garland n. chiefly poetic a wreath of myrtle, esp. as worn in honour of Venus, or by a bride; hence used allusively to refer to love or marriage.
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c1625 T. Heywood tr. Ovid De Arte Amandi ii. 63 My worke is at an end the palme bring me, And let the Mirtle garland be my fee.
1745 M. Akenside Ode to Friend, Unsuccessful in Love (1894) 156 Cease then to gaze with looks of love: Bid her adieu, the venal fair... Lay your myrtle garland down.
1814 H. F. Cary tr. Dante Vision II. xxi. 90 From Tolosa, Rome To herself drew me, where I merited A myrtle garland to inwreathe my brow.
2000 Internat. Herald Tribune (Nexis) 27 Apr. 9 Her technique is to build up each version with the painted wax masks of ancestors,..the smell of myrtle garlands.
myrtle grass n. rare = myrtle flag n.
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the world > plants > particular plants > plants and herbs > a grass or grasses > reedy or aquatic grasses > [noun] > sweet flag
beeworteOE
sweet calamusa1398
acorus?a1425
acorum1601
sweet rush1607
sweet cane1611
sweet smelling flag1640
sweet flag1790
myrtle flag1796
myrtle grass1796
flag-root1851
myrtle sedge1857
sweet sedge1857
1796 W. Withering Arrangem. Brit. Plants (ed. 3) II. 344 Sweet Myrtle-grass.
1866 J. Lindley & T. Moore Treasury Bot. I. 549/2 [Grass], Myrtle, Acorus Calamus.
1931 M. Grieve Mod. Herbal II. 726 Sweet Sedge... Synonyms. Calamus. Sweet Flag... Myrtle Grass. Myrtle Sedge.
myrtle green n. a deep shade of green resembling that of myrtle leaves; also attributive or as adj. (usually with hyphen).
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > colour > named colours > green or greenness > [noun] > shade or tint of green > other greens
beech-greenc1450
frost on green1559
sap1572
apple green1648
sap-green1686
myrtle green1717
Brunswick green1790
pistachio1791
pistachio green1793
mountain green1794
lettuce green1834
copper-green1843
canard1872
myrtle1872
leaf-green1880
cress-green1883
cresson1883
watercress green1883
lizard-green1897
jade1921
apple1923
laurel1923
mango1930
laurel-green1938
lettuce1963
mint1967
1717 E. Fenton Poems Several Occasions 155 A bright Maid, in Myrtle-green attir'd.
1858 R. S. Surtees Ask Mamma 134 The Major in..a myrtle-green coat.
1925 E. Sitwell et al. Poor Young People 2 The colours most in favour are marine Blue Louise, gris bois, grenate, myrtle green.
myrtle-greener n. a person dressed in myrtle green.Apparently an isolated use.
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1858 R. S. Surtees Ask Mamma 155 While the myrtle-greeners and others distribute themselves..here, there, and everywhere.
myrtle-leafed adj. = myrtle-leaved adj.
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1640 J. Parkinson Theatrum Botanicum 1452 Both the Myrtle leafed Sumacke and the Venice are in a manner as effectuall to all the purposes aforesaid.
1829 N. Amer. Rev. July 214 The sweet pea: a beautiful rose on a myrtle-leafed vine.
1909 A. E. Mack Bush Calendar 7 Flowers blooming [in August]. Acacia myrtifolia. Myrtle-leafed wattle.
myrtle-leaved adj. having leaves resembling those of a myrtle (chiefly in the names of particular plants).
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1648 J. Bobart Catalogus Plantarum Horti Medici Oxoniensis 44 Rhus Myrtifolia, Myrtle leaf'd Sumach.
1793 J. E. Smith Specimen Bot. New Holland 51 Mimosa myrtifolia. Myrtle-leaved Mimosa..is now not uncommon in our greenhouses.
1827–8 R. Sweet Flora Australasica No. 37 Myrtle-leaved Acacia..a handsome evergreen bushy Shrub, with slender smooth branches.
1996 Conservation Biol. 10 430/2 Evergreen shrubs such as..tall gallberry (Ilex coriacea), myrtle-leaved holly (I. myrtifolia), and sweet bay.
myrtle oil n. the volatile essential oil of the European myrtle, Myrtus communis.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > materials > derived or manufactured material > extracted or refined oil > [noun] > other plant-derived oils
oil de baya1398
oil roseta1400
alkitranc1400
laurinec1400
oil of spicac1400
seed oil1400
rape oil1420
nut-oil?c1425
masticine?1440
oil de rose?1440
oil of myrtine?a1450
gingellya1544
rose oil1552
alchitrean1562
oil of spike1577
oil of ben1594
myrtle oil1601
sesamus1601
sampsuchine1616
oil of walnuts1622
rape1641
oil of rhodium1649
rapeseed oil1652
neroli1676
oil of mace1681
spirit of scurvy-grass1682
beech-oil1716
poppy oil1737
castor oil1746
oil of sassafras1753
orange-peel oil1757
wood-oil1759
bergamot1766
sunflower oil1768
Russia oil1773
oil castor1779
tung-yu1788
poppy-seed oil1799
cocoa butter1801
sassafras oil1801
phulwara1805
oil of wine1807
grass oil1827
oil of marjoram1829
cajuput oil1832
essence of mustarda1834
picamar1835
spurge oil1836
oenanthic ether1837
tea oil1837
capnomor1838
cinnamon-oil1838
oil of mustard1838
orange-flower oil1838
resinein1841
mustard oil1844
myrrhol1845
styrol1845
oenanthol1847
shea butter1847
wintergreen1847
gaultheria oil1848
ginger-grass oil.1849
nutmeg oil1849
pine oil1849
peppermint oil1850
cocoa fat1851
orange oil1853
neem oil1856
poonga oil1857
xanthoxylene1857
crab-oil1858
illupi oil1858
Shanghai oil1861
stand oil1862
mustard-seed oil1863
carap oilc1865
cocum butter or oilc1865
Kurung oil1866
muduga oil1866
pichurim oil1866
serpolet1866
sumbul oil1868
sesame oil1870
niger oil1872
summer yellow1872
olibene1873
patchouli oil1875
pilocarpene1876
styrolene1881
tung oil1881
becuiba tallow1884
soy oil1884
tea-seed oil1884
eucalyptus1885
sage oil1888
hop-oil1889
cotton-seed oil1891
lemon oil1896
palmarosa oil1897
illipe butter1904
hydnocarpus oil1905
tung1911
niger seed oil1917
sun oil1937
vanaspati1949
fennel oil-
1601 P. Holland tr. Pliny Hist. World II. Table Mirtle oyle.
1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues at Myrtin Huile myrtin, Mirtle oyle; oyle extracted from Mirtle leaues.
1914 ‘M. Field’ Dedicated 111 All the afternoon Had Queen Nitocris smoothed the myrtle oil Round her fair cheeks.
1978 Population & Devel. Rev. 4 453 Vaginal plugs and occlusive pessaries..were of wool smeared with various substances, such as myrtle oil and white lead.
myrtle sedge n. rare = myrtle flag n.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > plants and herbs > a grass or grasses > reedy or aquatic grasses > [noun] > sweet flag
beeworteOE
sweet calamusa1398
acorus?a1425
acorum1601
sweet rush1607
sweet cane1611
sweet smelling flag1640
sweet flag1790
myrtle flag1796
myrtle grass1796
flag-root1851
myrtle sedge1857
sweet sedge1857
1857 A. Pratt Flowering Plants & Ferns Great Brit. V. 324 Sweet Sedge..in some country places it is called Myrtle Sedge.
1931 M. Grieve Mod. Herbal II. 726 Sweet Sedge... Synonyms. Calamus. Sweet Flag... Myrtle Grass. Myrtle Sedge.
myrtle spurge n. (originally) any of several spurges having leaves like those of a myrtle; (now) spec. the caper spurge, Euphorbia lathyris.
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > plants and herbs > according to family > Euphorbiaceae (spurges and allies) > [noun]
catapucec1386
Euphorbiaa1398
spurgea1400
tithymala1400
faitour's grassc1440
cat's-grassc1450
nettlewort1523
essell1527
lint-spurge1548
sea wartwort1548
spurge thyme1548
line-spurge1562
myrtle spurge1562
sun spurge1562
wolf's-milk1575
cypress tithymal1578
devil's milk1578
mercury1578
sea-spurge1597
sun tithymal1597
welcome to our house1597
wood-spurge1597
Euphorbium1606
milk-reed1611
milkwort1640
sun-turning spurge1640
spurge-wort1647
caper-bush1673
Portland spurge1715
milkweed1736
Medusa's head1760
little-good1808
welcome-home-husband1828
three-seeded mercury1846
cat's-milk1861
turnsole1863–79
mole-tree1864
snow-on-the-mountain1873
seven sisters1879
caper-plant1882
asthma herb1887
mountain snow1889
crown of thorns1890
olifants melkbos1898
1562 W. Turner 2nd Pt. Herball f. 154 I knowe no English name for it [sc. Myrtites], but it may be called myrtel spourge.
1648 J. Bobart Catalogus Plantarum Horti Medici Oxoniensis 51 Tithymalus myrtifol, Mirtle spurge.
1707 tr. P. Le Lorrain de Vallemont Curiosities in Husbandry & Gardening 154 The Wood-Spurge, the Cipress-Spurge, and the Mirtle-Spurge.
1884 W. Miller Dict. Eng. Names Plants 92/1 Myrtle-spurge, Euphorbia Lathyris.
1994 M. Griffiths Index Garden Plants 456/2 E[uphorbia] lathyris L. Caper spurge; myrtle Spurge; mole plant.
ΚΠ
1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues at Meurte Oiseau de meurte, a Mirtle Thrush.
myrtle warbler n. a North American warbler which feeds on the berries of the candleberry myrtle and is now considered to be a subspecies ( Dendroica coronata coronata) of the yellow-rumped warbler.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > birds > order Passeriformes (singing) > arboreal families > family Parulidae (wood warbler) > [noun] > genus Dendroica > dendroica coronata (yellow-rump)
yellow-rump1731
myrtle bird1810
myrtle warbler1892
1892 B. Torrey Foot-path Way 95 Not so was it with the myrtle warblers.
1947 Proc. Iowa Acad. Sci. 54 379 Myrtle Warbler..is often a late migrant, for a warbler.
1973 M. R. Crowell Greener Pastures 58 We are eating breakfast with three myrtle warblers this morning.
1998 St. Petersburg (Florida) Times (Nexis) 17 Oct. 3 d The yellow-rumped warbler..loves to feed on wax myrtle berries, which explains its other name, myrtle warbler.
myrtle wax n. a waxy substance produced by the bayberry (wax myrtle), Myrica cerifera.
ΘΚΠ
society > occupation and work > materials > derived or manufactured material > waxy materials > [noun] > derived from plants > specific
myrtle wax1700
piney tallow1843
Japanese wax1859
Japan wax1859
myrica wax1862
myrtle-berry wax1888
berry wax1897
candelilla wax1909
1700 in Cal. Virginia State Papers (1875) I. 68 26 pounds of Mirtle-wax, 01.06.00.
1764 Ann. Reg. 1763 54 Candles, myrtle wax, 14 boxes.
1880 G. W. Cable Grandissimes 414 He removed the lid and saw within..the image, in myrtle-wax.
1934 C. C. Steele Introd. Plant Biochem. v. 37 Japan ‘wax’ and myrtle ‘wax’ are both mixtures of glycerides and therefore fats.
1997 Nat. Hist. (Nexis) May 32 Settlers lacked good-quality wax with which to make candles to light their dark days and darker nights and had to make do with myrtle wax.
myrtle wine n. wine made from or flavoured with myrtle berries.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > drink > intoxicating liquor > wine > non-grape and home-made wines > [noun] > myrtle-berry wine
myrtite?1440
myrtle wine1597
1597 J. Gerard Herball iii. 1227 Wine is made of Myrtle berries... This is called Vinum Myrteum, or Myrtites, Myrtle wine.
1864 Chambers's Encycl. VI. 641/2 A Myrtle wine, called Myrtidanum, is made in Tuscany.
myrtle wood n. (a) the wood of a myrtle tree; (b) a wood or grove composed of myrtle trees.
ΚΠ
1558 T. Phaer tr. Virgil Seuen First Bks. Eneidos vi. sig. Q.iijv There they whome cruell loue consumyd hath with fretting moodes, In secret pathes they walk, & hyde them selues in Myrtyll woodes, Encombryd styll with cares.
1709 M. Prior Cupid & Ganymede 13 His Nine-pins, made of Myrtle Wood; (The Tree in Ida's Forest stood).
1732 Ld. Lyttelton Progress of Love (1763) 14 Beneath the covert of a myrtle wood, To Venus rais'd a rustick altar stood.
1867 J. N. Paton Spindrift 65 The midnight plaint Of nightingales low in the myrtle woods.
2000 Dallas Morning News (Electronic ed.) 10 Nov. She wears two-by-four boots and carries a hoe of myrtle wood and a dainty watering can.
myrtle wreath n. chiefly poetic a wreath of myrtle, used as a symbol of love or poetry; chiefly figurative.
ΚΠ
a1593 C. Marlowe Hero & Leander (1598) i. sig. Aivv Vpon her head she ware a myrtle wreath.
1670 J. Dryden Tyrannick Love v. i. 66 While I mix Cypress with my Myrtle wreath.
1785 W. Cowper Task ii. 229 Who sell their laurel for a myrtle wreath, And love when they should fight.
1884 ‘M. Field’ Callirrhoë ii. i. 38 I have crushed The myrtle wreath that's tumbled from her hair.
1926 R. Kipling Debits & Credits 145 A smoke of sacrifice; A chosen myrtle-wreath; An harlot's altered eyes; A rage 'gainst love or death.
Derivatives
ˈmyrtle-like adj.
ΚΠ
1753 Chambers's Cycl. Suppl. at Thymelæa Hoary myrtle-like leaves.
1859 W. S. Coleman Our Woodlands 101 The yellow-green leaves..give out their myrtle-like odour.
1963 Brittonia 15 369 H[esperozygis] kleinii... A small myrtle-like plant of which the leaves resemble the smallest of H. nitida in shape but not in texture.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2003; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
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