Althaea

American  

[al-thee-uh] / ælˈθi ə /

noun

Classical Mythology.

1. wife of Oeneus and mother of Toxeus, Tydeus, Meleager, and Deianira.

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althaea British  

/ ælˈθiːə /

noun

1. any Eurasian plant of the malvaceous genus Althaea, such as the hollyhock, having tall spikes of showy white, yellow, or red flowers

2. another name for rose of Sharon

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Etymology

Origin of althaea

C17: from Latin althaea, from Greek althaia marsh mallow (literally: healing plant), from Greek althein to heal

Example Sentences

When marshmallows were originally conceived in ancient Egypt, they were derived from a plant called Althaea officinalis and utilized as an herbal medicine.

From Salon • Nov. 21, 2023

Ancient Egyptian royalty ate the sap of Althaea officinalis, a mallow plant that grows in marshes, mixed with nuts and honey.

From Washington Post

Methinks the realms of England, France, and Ireland Bear that proportion to my flesh and blood As did the fatal brand Althaea burn'd Unto the prince's heart of Calydon.

From King Henry VI, Part 2 by Shakespeare, William

One's thoughts can only wander towards two great heroines of "lost" plays, Althaea in the Meleager, and Stheneboea in the Bellerophon.

From The Electra of Euripides Translated into English rhyming verse by Murray, Gilbert

It was not Althaea, but Hecuba, who dreamed, a little before Paris was born, that her offspring was a brand that consumed the kingdom.

From Character Sketches of Romance, Fiction and the Drama, Vol. 1 A Revised American Edition of the Reader's Handbook by Brewer, Ebenezer Cobham