Pyxis definition

pĭksĭs
pyxides
See word origin
Frequency:
(Christianity): The box in which ashes are stored for Ash Wednesday.
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A capsule dehiscing transversely by a lid that falls off to release the seeds.
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A constellation in the Southern Hemisphere, near Antlia and Puppis.
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A vase with a cover, used by the ancient Greeks and Romans.
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A small box or case.
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(bot.) A dehiscent, dry fruit whose upper portion splits off as a lid, as the fruit of a pimpernel.
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(place, proper) A S constellation between Puppis and Antlia.
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A capsule dehiscing transversely by a lid that falls off to release the seeds.
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A small box.
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(botany): A capsule in which the lid separates from the top of the fruit; a pyxidium.
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(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.
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Other Word Forms

Noun

Singular:
pyxis
Plural:
pyxides

Origin of pyxis

  • 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

  • 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

  • From Latin pyxis (“small box").

    From Wiktionary

Also Mentioned In

Words near pyxis in the Dictionary