lotus

UK: /ˈləʊtəs/ US: /ˈloʊtəs/ ,(lō′təs)

Inflections of 'lotus' (n): npl: lotuses

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025

lo•tus /ˈloʊtəs/   n., pl. -tus•es. 

1. Plant Biology [countable] a plant in Greek legend having a fruit that caused a state of dreamy and happy forgetfulness in those who ate it.
2. Plant Biology [uncountable] the fruit of this plant.
3. Plant Biology [countable] a plant of the water lily family having shieldlike leaves and showy, single flowers usually sticking out above the water.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

lo•tus  (lō′təs), n., pl. -tus•es. 

1. Plant Biology a plant believed to be a jujube or elm, referred to in Greek legend as yielding a fruit that induced a state of dreamy and contented forgetfulness in those who ate it.
2. Plant Biology the fruit itself.
3. Plant Biology any aquatic plant of the genus Nelumbo, of the water lily family, having shieldlike leaves and showy, solitary flowers usually projecting above the water.
4. Plant Biology any of several water lilies of the genus Nymphaea.
5. a decorative motif derived from such a plant and used widely in ancient art, as on the capitals of Egyptian columns.
6. Plant Biology any shrubby plant of the genus Lotus, of the legume family, having red, pink, yellow, or white flowers.

• Greek lōtós the lotus plant, perh of Semitic origin, originally
• Latin lōtus, lōtos
• 1530–40

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

lotus / ˈləʊtəs/ noun

1. (in Greek mythology) a fruit that induces forgetfulness and a dreamy languor in those who eat it
2. the plant bearing this fruit, thought to be the jujube, the date, or any of various other plants
3. any of several water lilies of tropical Africa and Asia, esp the white lotus (Nymphaea lotus), which was regarded as sacred in ancient Egypt
4. a similar plant, Nelumbo nucifera, which is the sacred lotus of India, China, and Tibet and also sacred in Egypt: family Nelumbonaceae
5. a representation of such a plant, common in Hindu, Buddhist, and ancient Egyptian carving and decorative art
6. any leguminous plant of the genus Lotus, of the Old World and North America, having yellow, pink, or white pealike flowers

Also called (rare): lotos Etymology: 16th Century: via Latin from Greek lōtos, from Semitic; related to Hebrew lōt myrrh