papyrus

noun (plural papyri /-rʌɪ, -riː/ or papyruses)

• 1 [mass noun] a material prepared in ancient Egypt from the pithy stem of a water plant, used in sheets throughout the ancient Mediterranean world for writing or painting on and also for making articles such as rope: the text was preserved, probably on papyrus [as modifier]:a papyrus scroll
• [count noun] a document written on papyrus: a remarkable papyrus recently acquired by the British Museum

• 2the tall aquatic sedge from which papyrus is obtained, native to central Africa and the Nile valley: a pond thickly planted with papyrus

  • Cyperus papyrus, family Cyperaceae