philtre

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phil·ter

also phil·tre (fĭl′tər)

1. A love potion.

2. A magic potion or charm.

tr.v. phil·tered, phil·ter·ing, phil·ters also phil·tred or phil·tring or phil·tres

To enchant with or as if with a philter.

[French philtre, from Old French, from Latin philtrum, from Greek philtron, from philein, to love, from philos, beloved, loving.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

philtre

(ˈfɪltə) or

philter

a drink supposed to arouse love, desire, etc

[C16: from Latin philtrum, from Greek philtron love potion, from philos loving]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

philtre

A love potion originally made by combining wine, herbs and drugs.

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

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Noun

philtre - a drink credited with magical power; can make the one who takes it love the one who gave it

love-philter, love-philtre, love-potion, philter

potion - a medicinal or magical or poisonous beverage

Translations

filtro pozione

philtre

philter (US) [ˈfɪltəʳ] N → filtro m

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

philtre

, (US) philter

n → Zaubertrank m; (= love philtre) → Liebestrank m

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

Mentioned in ?

References in classic literature ?

So you deny the influence of philtres upon the blood, and unguents on the skin!

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"Oh, yes, indeed, madame," continued Monte Cristo, "the secret dramas of the East begin with a love philtre and end with a death potion -- begin with paradise and end with -- hell.

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It has taken me all these years to find my tipple, Bunny; but here it is, my panacea, my elixir, my magic philtre!"

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I have chosen to focus on these sources and to exclude the list of magical ingredients in Theocritus' Pharmakeutria and Vergil's Eight Eclogue, since their fearsome magical undertone is given by the 'love-philtres' ([phrase omitted]-venena), which are said to be as powerful as those by Circe, Medea, and Perimede, (15) not by the components employed to concoct such philtres. These are, in fact, harmless elements such as barley, (16) bay leaves, (17) bran, (18) wax (19) coltsfoot, (20) a piece of a cloak, (21) and a lizard (22) in Theocritus; and frankincense, (23) a woollen band, (24) verbena, (25) bay leaves, (26) wax, (27) clay, (28) bran, (29) and multi-coloured threads (30) in Vergil.

The Real Tools of Magic: Pamphile's Macabre Paraphernalia (Apuleius, Met. 3,17,4-5)

As 37 species of harmful weeds grow in wheat field in different cropping systems; the most troublesome being Philtres minor, Chenopodium album, Convolvulus arvensis, etc.

Wheat: 60% of the daily diet of common man in Pakistan

The passage in question reads: 'These are the philtres, allurements, jynges, inveiglements, baits, and enticements of love, by the means whereof that may be peaceably revived which was painfully acquired' ('Ce sont les philtres, iynges et attraictz d'amour, moienans lesquelz pacificquement on retient ce que peniblement on avoit conqueste').' (2) Here Rabelais is actually writing on political science, and of military conquest, pacification, and subsequent rule, likening the process to winning a woman with great effort but then needing to retain her by means of love potions.

Two Scottish etymologies for English words

[i]f anyone pays respect to soothsayers, augurs, enchanters, or makes use of philtres, let him be anathema.