Fucus
/ˈfjuː.kəs/noun
A genus of brown seaweeds, especially rockweeds found along northern Atlantic and Pacific coasts.
Did you know?In Classical Latin, fūcus could mean seaweed or rouge, while fucare meant to paint or disguise—giving English the rare word “fucate,” meaning artificially colored or adorned.
Etymological Timeline
Ancient Greek
Greek
φῦκος (phŷkos)
“Seaweed, especially a reddish sea plant; also a red dye or cosmetic pigment”
Classical Latin
Latin
fūcus
“Seaweed, or a red cosmetic used to color the face”
Classical Latin
Latin
fūcāre
“To apply rouge or color; figuratively, to disguise or embellish”
18th Century
Scientific Latin
Fucus
“Established by Linnaeus as a botanical genus name for brown seaweeds”
Modern English
English
fucus
“A brown seaweed of the genus Fucus; chiefly used in botanical and scientific contexts”
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