maltese cross
maltese cross Lexical Profile
• noun
A cross with four equal-length arms that broaden from the center outward and are indented at the ends in a V-shape, historically associated with the Knights Hospitaller.
"The local fire department prominently displayed a silver Maltese cross on all of its ceremonial uniforms."
A perennial herbaceous plant belonging to the carnation family, native to central and eastern Russia, known for its dense clusters of bright red, deeply lobed petals that resemble the historic emblem.
"We planted a border of Maltese cross in the garden to attract butterflies and add a vibrant splash of scarlet to the landscape."
A gear mechanism that translates continuous rotation into intermittent rotary motion, historically used in cinema projectors to advance film frame by frame.
"The old film projector relied on a precision Maltese cross to smoothly pull the celluloid through the gate at exactly twenty-four frames per second."
Word Nuance & Usage
In heraldry and emergency services insignia, the true Maltese cross features straight, V-shaped indented ends, and is often visually conflated with the St. Florian cross, which has rounded edges and is more frequently the actual emblem used by modern fire departments.
Word Origin & Etymology
Named after the cross emblem adopted by the Knights Hospitaller (Knights of Malta) during the Crusades. Later applied to the flower and the mechanical gear due to their distinct visual resemblance to this eight-pointed heraldic symbol.
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.