The Collaborative International Dictionary
Heliotrope \He"li*o*trope\, n. [F. h['e]liotrope, L. heliotropium, Gr. ?; ? the sun + ? to turn, ? turn. See Heliacal, Trope.]
(Anc. Astron.) An instrument or machine for showing when the sun arrived at the tropics and equinoctial line.
(Bot.) A plant of the genus Heliotropium; -- called also turnsole and girasole. Heliotropium Peruvianum is the commonly cultivated species with fragrant flowers.
(Geodesy & Signal Service) An instrument for making signals to an observer at a distance, by means of the sun's rays thrown from a mirror.
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(Min.) See Bloodstone (a) .
Heliotrope purple, a grayish purple color.
Wiktionary
n. 1 The heliotrope; so named because its flowers are supposed to turn toward the sun. 2 The sunflower. 3 A kind of spurge ((taxlink Euphorbia helioscopia species noshow=1)). 4 The euphorbiaceous plant (taxlink Chrozophora tinctoria species noshow=1). 5 A purple dye obtained from ''Chrozophora tinctoria''. 6 (context chemistry obsolete English) litmus
Wikipedia
Turnsole or folium was a dyestuff prepared from the annual plant Chrozophora tinctoria.
Usage examples of "turnsole".
She had woven them with her own hands out of wolfsbane and turnsole, and still nursed blisters on her palms and fingers.