castor
English
Etymology 1
From Old French castor (“beaver”), from Latin castor (“beaver”).
Alternative forms
Noun
castor (plural castors)
- A pivoting roller attached to the bottom of furniture to allow it to be moved.
- A hat made from the fur of the beaver.
- Sir Walter Scott
- I have always been known for the jaunty manner in which I wear my castor.
- Sir Walter Scott
- A caster; a container with perforated cap for sprinkling (e.g. pepper-castor).
- A heavy quality of broadcloth for overcoats.
- castoreum
Derived terms
See also
Etymology 2
Named from Greek mythology; see Castor and Pollux. The name pollux was given to another mineral with which it was always found.
Synonyms
Part or all of this entry has been imported from the 1913 edition of Webster’s Dictionary, which is now free of copyright and hence in the public domain. The imported definitions may be significantly out of date, and any more recent senses may be completely missing.
(See the entry for castor in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.)
Catalan
Further reading
- “castor” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
French
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /kas.tɔʁ/
Audio (file) Audio (Paris) (file) - Homophone: castors
Synonyms
- (beaver): bièvre
Further reading
- “castor” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).
Latin
Etymology
From Ancient Greek κάστωρ (kástōr), from Doric Greek κάστον (káston, “wood”). See also Sanskrit कस्तूरी (kastūrī, “musk”)
Pronunciation
- (Classical) IPA(key): /ˈkas.tor/, [ˈkas.tɔr]
Inflection
Third declension.
Case | Singular | Plural |
---|---|---|
Nominative | castor | castorēs |
Genitive | castoris | castorum |
Dative | castorī | castoribus |
Accusative | castorem | castorēs |
Ablative | castore | castoribus |
Vocative | castor | castorēs |
Derived terms
- castoreātus
- castoreum
- castorīnātus
- castorīnus
Related terms
Descendants
See also
Anagrams
References
- castor in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
- castor in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
- castor in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition, 1883–1887)
- castor in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire Illustré Latin-Français, Hachette
- castor in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898) Harper's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers
- castor in William Smith, editor (1848) A Dictionary of Greek Biography and Mythology, London: John Murray
Norman
Romanian
Etymology
Borrowed from French castor and its source, Latin castor, from Ancient Greek κάστωρ (kástōr).