calament

French

Etymology

Inherited from Old French calament~calamente, borrowed from Medieval Latin calamentum, from Latin calaminthe, from Ancient Greek καλαμίνθη (kalamínthē, “an odoriferous plant”), of uncertain origin (either by haplology from *καλαμο-μίνθη (*kalamo-mínthē) or a loanword, which Beekes considers most likely to be from Pre-Greek). First attested in the twelfth century.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ka.la.mɑ̃/

Noun

calament m (plural calaments)

1. calamint (of the genera Acinos or Calamintha)

Further reading

• “calament”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.