Pluma

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A feather or plumage that serves as decoration or insulation for birds
2. A light and delicate structure resembling feathers, often used in crafts or fashion
3. A symbolic representation of lightness and grace, commonly associated with birds in nature

Etymology: Spanish "pluma" means a bird's soft feather, and it carries the same Latin ancestor as the English "plume" that arrived earlier by a different route. The Latin "plūma" meant a soft feather, the fine down that covers a bird's body rather than the stiff flight feathers at the wing's edge. Spanish took the word directly from Latin, so it kept the sense of that fluffy covering. English received the same Latin word as "plume," and because the two forms split from one source, they are doublets. Over time "plume" moved toward ornamental feathers worn on helmets and hats, while the Spanish word stayed closer to the feather itself and also came to mean a pen, since quill feathers were once used for writing.

Synonyms: feather, plume, quill