castoff 2 (kastof)

[ Hind. Malay kastūri, musk; Pers. khāz, a beaver.] I. n. 1. A beaver.-2. [ cap.] Among French Canadians, one of the IMG:content-3249.png:[blocks in formation] castor2 (kas'tor), n. [Also called castoreum, of which castor is a shortened form; = F. cas to réum = Sp. castóreo = Pg. It. castoreo, castor3 (kas'tor), n. [Named from Castor in Gr. myth.: see Castor and Pollux.] A mineral found in the island of Elba a ociated with another called pollux. It is a silicate of aluminium and lithium, and probably a variety of petalite. It is colorle and transparent, with a glistening luster. Also called castorite. castor4, n. See caster, 3. Castor and Pollux (kas'tor and pol'uks). [Named from Castor (Gr. Κάστωρ ) and Pollux (Gr. Πολυδεύκης), in Gr. myth. twin sons of Zeus or Jupiter, in the form of a swan, and Leda, wife of Tynd are us, king of Sparta; or produced from two eggs laid by her, one containing Castor and Clytæmnestra, the other Pollux (or Poly deuces) and Helen; or all, according to Homer, children of Leda and Tynd are us, and hence called Tyndarida. Castor and Pollux are jointly called the Dioscuri, sons of Zeus or Jupiter.] 1. In astron., the constellation of the Twins, or Gemini, and also the zodiacal sign named from that constellation, although the latter has moved completely out of the former. Castor, a Geminorum, is a greenish star of the magnitude 1.6, the more northerly of the two that lie near together in the heads of the Twins. Pollux, ẞ Geminorum, is a very yellow star of the magnitude 1.2, the more southerly of the same pair. See cut under Gemini. 2. An ancient cla ical name of the corposant, or St. Elmo's fire.-3. [ l. c.] The name given to two minerals found together in granite in the island of Elba. See the separate names. cas to rate (kas'to-rāt), n. [ castor-bean, n. See bean1. castoreum (kas-tō'rē-um), n. [L.] Same as castor2.