papyrus
[ puh-pahy-ruh s ]
/ pəˈpaɪ rəs /
noun, plural pa·py·ri [puh-pahy-rahy, -ree] /pəˈpaɪ raɪ, -ri/, pa·py·rus·es.
a tall, aquatic plant, Cyperus papyrus, of the sedge family, native to the Nile valley: the Egyptian subspecies, C. papyrus hadidii, thought to be common in ancient times, now occurs only in several sites.
a material on which to write, prepared from thin strips of the pith of this plant laid together, soaked, pressed, and dried, used by the ancient Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans.
an ancient document, manuscript, or scroll written on this material.
RELATED CONTENT
RELATED WORDS
sheet, poster, note, pad, stationery, card, streamer, rag, parchment, vellum, tissue, newsprint, letterhead, diploma, paper, scroll, palimpsest, sheepskin, schedule, list
Nearby words
- papulovesicular,
- papyraceous,
- papyrian,
- papyritious,
- papyrology,
- par,
- par avion,
- par excellence,
- par for the course,
- par value
Origin of papyrus
1350–1400; Middle English papirus < Latin papȳrus < Greek pápȳros
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for papyrus
papyrus
/ (pəˈpaɪrəs) /
noun plural -ri (-raɪ) or -ruses
a tall aquatic cyperaceous plant, Cyperus papyrus, of S Europe and N and central Africa with small green-stalked flowers arranged like umbrella spokes around the stem top
a kind of paper made from the stem pith of this plant, used by the ancient Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans
an ancient document written on this paper
Word Origin for papyrus
C14: via Latin from Greek papūros reed used in making paper
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
papyrus
late 14c., from Latin papyrus "the paper plant, paper made from it," from Greek papyros "any plant of the paper plant genus," said to be of Egyptian origin. Proper plural is papyri.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper