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Webster 1913 Edition


Wreath

Wreath

(?; 277)
,
Noun.
;
pl.
Wreaths
(#)
.
[OE.
wrethe
, AS.
wrǣð
a twisted band, fr.
wrīðan
to twist. See
Writhe
.]
1.
Something twisted, intertwined, or curled;
as, a
wreath
of smoke; a
wreath
of flowers
.
“A wrethe of gold.”
Chaucer.
[He] of his tortuous train
Curled many a wanton
wreath
.
Milton.
2.
A garland; a chaplet, esp. one given to a victor.
Conquest doth grant
He dear
wreath
to the Grecian combatant.
Chapman.
Far back in the ages,
The plow with
wreaths
was crowned.
Bryant.
3.
(Her.)
An appendage to the shield, placed above it, and supporting the crest (see Illust. of
Crest
). It generally represents a twist of two cords of silk, one tinctured like the principal metal, the other like the principal color in the arms.

Webster 1828 Edition


Wreath

WREATH

,
Noun.
[See Writhe.]
1.
To twist; to convolve; to wind one about another; as, to wreath a garland of flowers.
2.
To interweave; to entwine; as chains of wreathed work.
3.
To encircle, as a garland.
The flowrs that wreath the sparkling bowl.
4.
To encircle as with a garland; to dress in a garland.
And with thy winding ivy wreaths her lance.

WREATH

,
Verb.
I.
To be interwoven or entwined; as a bower of wreathing trees.

Definition 2024


wreath

wreath

English

A Christmas wreath
The coat of arms of Lech Wałęsa, President of Poland from 1990 to 1995. A wreath, or torse, in argent (silver) and gules (red) lies between the top of the helmet and the eagle crest.

Noun

wreath (plural wreaths)

  1. Something twisted, intertwined, or curled.
    a wreath of smoke; a wreath of clouds
    • 1892, James Yoxall, chapter 5, in The Lonely Pyramid: A Tale of Adventures, being the Strange Experiences of Roy LeFevre in the Desert during the Year 1884, London; Glasgow; Edinburgh; Dublin: Blackie and Son, OCLC 192021084:
      The desert storm was riding in its strength; the travellers lay beneath the mastery of the fell simoom. Whirling wreaths and columns of burning wind, rushed around and over them.
  2. An ornamental circular band made, for example, of plaited flowers and leaves, and used as decoration; a garland or chaplet, especially one given to a victor.
    • 1913, Joseph Crosby Lincoln, chapter 12, in Mr. Pratt's Patients, New York, N.Y.: A. L. Burt, OCLC 2412914:
      So, after a spell, he decided to make the best of it and shoved us into the front parlor. 'Twas a dismal sort of place, with hair wreaths, and wax fruit, and tin lambrekins, and land knows what all.
  3. (heraldry) An appendage to the shield, placed above it, and supporting the crest; an orle, a torse. It generally represents a twist of two cords of silk, one tinctured like the principal metal, the other like the principal color in the coat of arms.

Synonyms

Translations

Verb

wreath (third-person singular simple present wreaths, present participle wreathing, simple past and past participle wreathed)

  1. To place an entwined circle of flowers upon or around something.
  2. (transitive) To wrap around something in a circle.
    At the funeral, a circle of comrades wreathed the grave of the honored deceased.
  3. (intransitive) To curl, writhe or spiral in the form of a wreath.
    • 1816, Lord Byron, “Stanzas for Music,” 4,
      Though wit may flash from fluent lips, and mirth distract the breast,
      Through midnight hours that yield no more their former hope of rest;
      ’Tis but as ivy-leaves around the ruined turret wreath
      All green and wildly fresh without, but worn and grey beneath.

See also

Translations

Anagrams