sage

¹

[ seyj ]

noun

1. a profoundly wise person; a person famed for wisdom.

   Synonyms: philosopher

   Antonyms: fool

2. someone venerated for the possession of wisdom, judgment, and experience.

adjective

, sag·er, sag·est.

1. wise, judicious, or prudent:

   sage advice.

   Synonyms: sagacious

sage

²

[ seyj ]

noun

1. any plant or shrub belonging to the genus Salvia, of the mint family.
2. an herb, Salvia officinalis, whose grayish-green leaves are used medicinally and in cooking.
3. the leaves of the medicinal and culinary herb Salvia officinalis.
4. sagebrush.

Sage

³

[ seyj ]

noun

1. Russell, 1816–1906, U.S. financier.

sage

¹

/ seɪdʒ /

noun

1. a perennial Mediterranean plant, Salvia officinalis, having grey-green leaves and purple, blue, or white flowers: family Lamiaceae (labiates)
2. the leaves of this plant, used in cooking for flavouring
3. short for sagebrush

sage

²

/ seɪdʒ /

noun

1. a man revered for his profound wisdom

adjective

1. profoundly wise or prudent
2. obsolete.
   solemn

Derived Forms

• ˈsageness, noun
• ˈsagely, adverb

Other Words From

• sage·ly adverb adjective
• sage·ness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of sage¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English, from Old French, from Vulgar Latin sapius (unattested), from Latin sap(ere) “to taste, have taste, smell, smell of; to have sense, discern, know, be wise” + -idus; sapient, -id ⁴

Origin of sage²

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English sa ( u ) ge, from Middle French sau ( l ) ge, from Latin salvia, derivative of salvus safe (so named from its supposed healing powers)

Word History and Origins

Origin of sage¹

C14: from Old French saulge, from Latin salvia, from salvus safe, in good health (from the curative properties attributed to the plant)

Origin of sage²

C13: from Old French, from Latin sapere to be sensible; see sapient

Example Sentences

Amalia Holguin, Sage Hill, 5-9, Jr.: Made big impact as sophomore, averaging 12.4 points.

From Los Angeles Times

Sage Hill: Key players graduated but junior Amalia Holguin is back.

From Los Angeles Times

It’s sage Black wisdom that the devil works hard, but AKAs work harder.

From Slate

Other new menu items include Starbuck’s Gingerbread Cream Cold Foam, a blend of gingerbread flavors with vanilla sweet cream; Turkey Sage Danish, a savory pastry filled with turkey sausage and bechamel sauce; Dark Toffee Bundt, a personal-sized, toffee-flavored Bundt cake; Penguin Cookie, a shortbread cookie iced with a penguin design; and Snowman Cake Pop, a vanilla-flavored cake mixed with buttercream and dipped in a white chocolate icing.

From Salon

Final selling point: You don’t even have to wrap this gift, because it comes so beautifully decorated, complete with sprigs of pressed but still fragrant blooms of Cleveland sage, which, like the golden poppies, are California native plants.

From Los Angeles Times