stigma
/stigm / noun (pl. stigmas or especially in sense 2 stigmata /stigmaat , stigm t /) 1 a mark or sign of disgrace or discredit. 2 (stigmata) (in Christian tradition) marks corresponding to those left on Christs body by the Crucifixion, said to have been impressed by divine favour on the bodies of St Francis of Assisi and others. 3 Medicine a visible sign or characteristic of a disease. 4 Botany the part of a pistil that receives the pollen during pollination. ORIGIN Greek, a mark made by a pointed instrument, a dot.
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