fern seed

American  

noun

1. the spores of ferns, formerly supposed to have the power to make persons invisible.

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fern seed British  

noun

1. the minute particles by which ferns reproduce themselves, formerly thought to be invisible. Possession of them was thought to make a person invisible

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Etymology

Origin of fern seed

First recorded in 1590–1600

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

fern seed

John, I remember, always carried some fern seed in his trouser-pocket.

From Olivia in India by Douglas, O.

She sat rocking herself to and fro in her sorrow, while the old woman threw the fern seed, picked, alas! too late, into the driftwood fire.

From A Fortunate Term by Brazil, Angela

So Shakespeare has it, too, in his play of "1 Henry IV.," act ii. scene 1: "We have the receipt of fern seed, we walk invisible."

From The South Isles of Aran by Burke, Oliver J.

"We have the receipt of fern seed: we walk invisible."

From Poems by Cawein, Madison Julius

Coral, rhinoceros-horn, fern seed, the mandrake, &c., were likewise connected with the moon-goddess and credited with nocturnal luminosity.

From The New Gresham Encyclopedia Volume 4, Part 1: Deposition to Eberswalde by Various