Digitalis

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /dɪdʒɪˈtɑːlɪs/

Definitions

1. A type of plant with distinctive bell-shaped flowers that contains potent glycosides used to treat heart diseases, but can be poisonous if improperly handled
2. This flowering herb is known for its striking tubular blossoms and is utilized in medicine to support heart function, though it holds toxic properties
3. A flowering plant known for its tubular blooms is used medicinally for heart ailments, while also being potentially toxic if misused

Etymology: The foxglove's scientific name rests on a thimble. German speakers call the plant "Fingerhut," meaning "finger-hat" or thimble, because its bell-shaped flowers look like the caps people slip over their fingertips. When botanists needed a Latin name, they reached for "digitalis," an adjective meaning "of the fingers," derived from Latin "digitus" (finger). The genus name therefore describes the flower's shape by way of a German folk name, not the plant's own Latin lore. The term is a modern Latin coinage, built from classical materials rather than found in ancient texts. Its English relative is "digital," which came from the same Latin adjective. The two words are doublets: one entered English as a learned, scientific term, while the other passed through everyday usage and later took on the sense of counting on fingers and, much later, computing.