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Meaning of VESTA

WordNet Dictionary
 
 Definition: 
  1. [n]  the brightest asteroid but the fourth to be discovered
  2. [n]  (Roman mythology) goddess of the hearth and its fire whose flame was tended by vestal virgins; counterpart of Greek Hestia
 
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 See Also: asteroid, minor planet, planetoid, Roman deity

 

 

Webster's 1913 Dictionary
 
 Definition: 
\Ves"ta\, n. [L. Vesta, akin to Gr. ? Vesta, ? the hearth
of the house, and perhaps to Skr. ush to burn (see East), or
perhaps to Skr. vas to dwell, and E. was.]
1. (Rom. Myth.) One of the great divinities of the ancient
   Romans, identical with the Greek Hestia. She was a virgin,
   and the goddess of the hearth; hence, also, of the fire on
   it, and the family round it.
2. (Astron.) An asteroid, or minor planet, discovered by
   Olbers in 1807.
3. A wax friction match. --Simmonds.
 

 

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