Myr'tle, n.

(mēr'tl), n. [Fr. myrte, with l inserted, Pr. mirt, mirta, murta, Sp. & Pg. mirto, murta, It. mirto, Lat. myrtus, Gr. μύρτος, from Per. mūrd; N. H. Ger. myrte, M. H. Ger. mirtel, O. H. Ger. mirtil.] (Bot.) A plant of the genus Myrtus, of several species. The common myrtle rises, with a shrubby, upright stem, eight or ten feet high. Its branches form a close, full head, thickly covered with ovate or lanceolate evergreen leaves. It has small, pale flowers from the axils, singly on each footstalk. The ancients considered it sacred to Venus.