stigma
- 01 C2 Proficiency
the top part of the centre of a flower where pollen is received.
the receptive tip of a carpel, or of several fused carpels, in the gynoecium of a flower.
Simple“Bees carry pollen from one flower and drop it onto the stigma of another.”
In context“The stigma is often sticky or hairy to ensure that pollen grains transferred by insects remain in place for germination.”
- 02 C2 Proficiency
a physical mark or sign on the body that shows someone has a specific disease.
a visible sign or characteristic of a disease or a physical abnormality.
Simple“The doctor looked for physical stigmas that might suggest a liver problem.”
In context“Clinical examination revealed several cutaneous stigmas associated with chronic nutritional deficiency.”
- 03 C2 Proficiency
a special symbol used in the Greek alphabet to represent the letters 's' and 't' together.
a ligature of the Greek letters sigma and tau, used in some historical texts and as a numeral for six.
Simple“The old manuscript used a stigma instead of writing the two letters separately.”
In context“In Greek gematria, the stigma is used to represent the number six, though it is rarely encountered in modern typography.”
“The good news was that bankruptcy was not causing permanent financial stigma.”
“Because these labels can carry social consequences—including stigma, assumptions about gender and perceived group membership—individuals may avoid labels that accurately describe their desires or behavior, or adopt labels that do not fully reflect them.”
From Latin stigma, from Ancient Greek στίγμα (stígma, “mark of slavery or disgrace”), from στίζω (stízō, “to mark”). Closely related to stigme, and distantly related to stick.
From Byzantine Greek στίγμα (stígma), likely coined by analogy with σίγμα (sígma).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.