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bet·o·ny

(bĕtn-ē)

n. pl. bet·o·nies

Any of several plants of the widespread genus Stachys in the mint family, especially S. officinalis, native to Eurasia and northern Africa and having spikes of usually reddish-purple flowers. It was formerly used as an herbal medicine. Also called wood betony, woundwort.

[Middle English, from Old French betoine, from Medieval Latin betōnia, both from Latin vettōnica, probably from Vettōnēs, an ancient Iberian tribe.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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