papyri

Variant of papyrus

papyrus definition

pa·py·rus (pə pī′rəs)

noun pl. papyri -·ri′ (-rī′) or papyruses -·ruses

  1. a tall water plant (Cyperus papyrus) of the sedge family, abundant in the Nile region of Egypt and widely cultivated as an ornamental
  2. a writing material made from this plant by the ancient Egyptians, Greeks, and Romans, by soaking, pressing, and drying thin slices of its pith laid crosswise
  3. any ancient document or manuscript on papyrus

Etymology: ME papirus < L papyrus < Gr papyros, prob. < Coptic paparo < ? Egypt pʾ-n-pr-ʿʾ, that of the pharaoh

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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