aetites en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- /iˈtaɪdiz/ (US)
- /iːˈtaɪtiːz/ (UK)
Etymology
From Anglo-Norman aetite, aetites, Middle French aetite, and their source, Latin (lapis) āetītēs (“eagle (stone)”), from Hellenistic Ancient Greek ἀετίτης (λίθος) (aetítēs (líthos), “eagle (stone)”), from ἀετός (aetós, “eagle”).
Meanings
-
An eaglestone.
On such analogous reasoning it is not difficult to see why the aetites stone, with another rattling inside it, should have been thought helpful to a pregnant woman.
1971, Keith Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, Folio Society, published 2012, page 184: