Pyxis Definition

pĭksĭs
pyxides
noun
pyxides
A vase with a cover, used by the ancient Greeks and Romans.
Webster's New World
A small box or case.
Webster's New World
A dehiscent, dry fruit whose upper portion splits off as a lid, as the fruit of a pimpernel.
Webster's New World
A S constellation between Puppis and Antlia.
Webster's New World
Wiktionary
Synonyms:
pronoun

(astronomy) A spring constellation of the southern sky, said to resemble the compass of a ship. It is associated with the larger Argo Navis, although it was never officially part of that constellation.

Wiktionary

Other Word Forms of Pyxis

Noun

Singular:
pyxis
Plural:
pyxides

Origin of Pyxis

  • Named by the French astronomer Nicolas Louis de Lacaille in 1763, and originally called Pyxis Nautica "Nautical compass". From Latin pyxis, a "little box"

    From Wiktionary

  • New Latin Pyxis (nautica) (mariner's) compass from Greek puxis box

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

  • Latin pyxis box from Greek puxis

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

  • From Latin pyxis (“small box").

    From Wiktionary

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