toadstone

[tohd-stohn]

noun

any of various stones or stonelike objects, formerly supposed to have been formed in the head or body of a toad, worn as jewels or amulets.

Origin of toadstone

First recorded in 1550–60; toad + stone

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for toadstone

Historical Examples of toadstone

The setting is of silver, and the jewel which it carries is called a toadstone.
Ten Thousand Wonderful Things
Edmund Fillingham King
Popular names for them are "whinstone," "greenstone," "toadstone" and "trap."
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 3
Various
Last of all he showed me a toadstone amulet set in silver, a charm to prevent and ward off the spells of fairies.
The Heather-Moon
C. N. Williamson and A. M. Williamson
The lead veins exist in the calcareous strata, but disappear at the limits of the toadstone.
A Dictionary of Arts, Manufactures and Mines
Andrew Ure
Dark and weird are the legends relating to the power of the toadstone, that amulet so highly prized by witches and astrologers.
The Mystery and Romance of Alchemy and Pharmacy
Charles John Samuel Thompson

British Dictionary definitions for toadstone

toadstone

noun

rare an amygdaloidal basalt occurring in the limestone regions of Derbyshire

Word Origin for toadstone

C18: perhaps from a supposed resemblance to a toad's spotted skin

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

Word Origin and History for toadstone

"stone or stone-like object, supposedly magical (with healing or protective power) and found in the heads of certain toads," is attested from 1550s, from toad + stone (n.). Translating Greek batrakhites, Medieval Latin bufonites; cf. also French crapaudine (13c.), German krötenstein.