obelus
Americannoun
plural
obelinoun
-
a mark (— or ÷) used in editions of ancient documents to indicate spurious words or passages
-
another name for dagger
Etymology
Origin of obelus
1350–1400; Middle English < Late Latin < Greek obelós spit, pointed pillar
Explanation
In math, an obelus is a symbol that means "divided by," while in an ancient text it's an editorial mark on a line or word that is incorrect or doubtful. An obelus typically looks like this: ÷, a horizontal line with dots above and below. It's familiar to anyone who's done arithmetic problems such as 12÷3=X. The original obelus conveyed "remove or cut this" in a text, with just a line symbolizing a dart or dagger. The two dots appeared later, as did a dagger-shaped version that's often added beside a person's name to mean "deceased." The word itself has a Greek root meaning "sharpened stick."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
One way is to interpret the obelus, or ÷ symbol, as dividing everything to the left of it by to the right of it.
From Slate • Mar. 12, 2013
The passage is noted by an asterisk or obelus or other mark in Codd.
From A Plain Introduction to the Criticism of the New Testament, Vol. II. by Scrivener, Frederick Henry Ambrose
The simple obelus apparently denotes interest, the pointed obelus great interest, the doubly pointed obelus intense interest, and the pointing finger of a carefully drawn hand burning interest.
From A Sixth-Century Fragment of the Letters of Pliny the Younger A Study of Six Leaves of an Uncial Manuscript Preserved in the Pierpont Morgan Library New York by Lowe, E. A. (Elias Avery)
Thus at the end of the first letter of Book III we find a doubly pointed obelus opposite an interesting passage, the text of which shows no variants or editorial questionings.
From A Sixth-Century Fragment of the Letters of Pliny the Younger A Study of Six Leaves of an Uncial Manuscript Preserved in the Pierpont Morgan Library New York by Lowe, E. A. (Elias Avery)
The Marks *, †, ‡, &c.—What is the origin of the asterisk, obelus, &c., used for references to notes?
From Notes and Queries, Number 59, December 14, 1850 by Various
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
