Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun An association of disgrace or public disapproval with something, such as an action or condition: synonym: stain.
- noun A visible indicator of disease.
- noun A small bodily mark, especially a birthmark or scar, that is congenital or indicative of a condition or disease.
- noun Psychology A bleeding spot on the skin considered to be a manifestation of conversion reaction.
- noun Christianity Bodily marks, sores, or sensations of pain corresponding in location to the crucifixion wounds of Jesus, believed to be given as divine recognition of devotion.
- noun Botany The apex of the pistil of a flower, on which pollen grains are deposited and germinate.
- noun Biology A small mark, spot, or pore, such as the respiratory spiracle of an insect or an eyespot in certain protists.
- noun Archaic A mark burned into the skin as a visible identifier of a person as a criminal or slave; a brand.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun In Greek grammar and paleography, a ligature (
ς ) still sometimes used forστ (st), and also used as a numeral . - noun In geometry, a point so connected with another, called the index, that motion of the index in a plane through their join causes definite motion of the stigma in this plane.
- noun A mark made with a red-hot iron, formerly in many countries upon criminals as a badge of infamy; a brand impressed on slaves and others.
- noun Any mark of infamy, slur, or disgrace which attaches to a person on account of evil conduct.
- noun In anatomy and zoology, a mark; a marked point or place: variously applied to marks of color, as a spot, and to many different pores or small holes.
- noun A place or point on the skin which bleeds periodically or at irregular intervals during some mental states. The spontaneous appearance of stigmata was formerly regarded super-stitiously.
- noun plural In the Roman Catholic Church, marks said to have been supernaturally impressed upon the bodies of certain persons in imitation of the wounds on the crucified body of Christ.
- noun In botany, a modified part of the style or, when that is wanting, of the surface of the ovary, which in impregnation receives the pollen.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun A mark made with a burning iron; a brand.
- noun Any mark of infamy or disgrace; sign of moral blemish; stain or reproach caused by dishonorable conduct; reproachful characterization.
- noun (Bot.) That part of a pistil which has no epidermis, and is fitted to receive the pollen. It is usually the terminal portion, and is commonly somewhat glutinous or viscid. See
Illust. ofStamen and ofFlower . - noun (Anat.) A small spot, mark, scar, or a minute hole; -- applied especially to a spot on the outer surface of a Graafian follicle, and to spots of intercellular substance in scaly epithelium, or to minute holes in such spots.
- noun (Pathol.) A red speck upon the skin, produced either by the extravasation of blood, as in the bloody sweat characteristic of certain varieties of religious ecstasy, or by capillary congestion, as in the case of drunkards.
- noun One of the external openings of the tracheæ of insects, myriapods, and other arthropods; a spiracle.
- noun One of the apertures of the pulmonary sacs of arachnids. See
Illust. ofScorpion . - noun One of the apertures of the gill of an ascidian, and of Amphioxus.
- noun (Geom.) A point so connected by any law whatever with another point, called an
index , that as the index moves in any manner in a plane the first point or stigma moves in a determinate way in the same plane. - noun (R. C. Ch.) Marks believed to have been supernaturally impressed upon the bodies of certain persons in imitation of the wounds on the crucified body of Christ. See def. 5, above.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun A
mark ofinfamy ordisgrace . - noun A
scar orbirthmark . - noun botany The sticky part of a
flower that receivespollen duringpollination . - noun a ligature of the Greek letters
sigma andtau , (Ϛ /ϛ ).
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun a skin lesion that is a diagnostic sign of some disease
- noun an external tracheal aperture in a terrestrial arthropod
- noun the apical end of the style where deposited pollen enters the pistil
- noun a symbol of disgrace or infamy
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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Stigmata is the plural of the Greek word stigma, which is translated as ‘mark’ or ‘brand,’ like one you might place on an animal, like cowboys brand cows.
The Shroud Codex Ph.D Jerome R. Corsi 2010
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Inherent in this cultural stigma is often the desertion of the partner or male responsible for the pregnancy, thus relegating the woman to position of a single mother.
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If the stigma is less, THEIR hope is greater, that a homosexual will have a larger pool of willing candidates – who will entertain the notion of bisexuality atleast.
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If the stigma is less, THEIR hope is greater, that a homosexual will have a larger pool of willing candidates – who will entertain the notion of bisexuality at least.
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Samantha Berg and Melissa Farley have both pushed the claim that advocates for decriminalization believe social stigma is the most grievous injury against sex workers.
Monica Shores: Prostitution "Experts" Versus Prostitutes: Why Don't All Sex Workers Deserve a Voice? Monica Shores 2010
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She who was beaten up in front of her kids and put up with it to avoid the divorce stigma is a woman.
Global Voices in English » Egyptian Women and a Fresh Outlook on Divorce 2009
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Social stigma is responsible for “teaching” us what is and is not acceptable for us to display.
should you have to hide the real you to be accepted – gay | My[confined]Space 2009
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But saying that client-stigma is worse than Whore Stigma?
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The "living in sin" stigma is less than it was 30 years ago, when landlords denied apartments to unmarried couples, said Steven Ruggles, director of the Minnesota Population Center at the University of Minnesota.
In economic downturn, an uptick in couples living together before marriage Jeremy Olson 2010
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Getting people to forego the fear and stigma is what unionization is all about.
Sex in America: Can The Conversation Change? « Bound, Not Gagged 2009
ruzuzu commented on the word stigma
"5. A red speck upon the skin, produced either by the extravasation of blood, as in the bloody sweat characteristic of certain varieties of religious ecstasy, or by capillary congestion, as in the case of drunkards." --CD&C
October 19, 2011