corona

Etymology 1

The noun is borrowed from Latin corōna (“crown; garland, wreath”), from Ancient Greek κορώνη (korṓnē, “type of crown; curved object (door handle, tip of a bow, stern of a ship, etc.)”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker- (“to turn, bend”). The English word is a doublet of crown. The plural form coronae is borrowed from Latin corōnae. The verb is derived from the noun.

noun

1. A large, round, pendent chandelier, with spikes around its upper rim to hold candles or lamps, usually hung from the roof of a church.
   The magnificent bronze corona, or luminaria, which still hangs in the central octagon, shews the skill of the workmen in bronze of that period. 1865 February, J[ohn] H[enry] Parker, “Aix-la-Chapelle: A Letter from J. H. Parker, Esq.”, in Sylvanus Urban [pseudonym], editor, The Gentleman’s Magazine and Historical Review, volume XVIII (New Series; volume CCVIII overall), London: John Henry and James Parker, →OCLC, page 133
2. (anatomy) An upper or crownlike portion of certain parts of the body.
   1. A region of the skull located along the coronal suture, at the junction between the frontal bone and the two parietal bones.
      Is it probable that this depression has arisen from the distorting effect of some form of head dress, similar perhaps to that which is still applied to the heads of infants in various parts of France, as described by Drs. Foville and Lunier? This consists of a neckerchief passed twice round the head from the corona either to the back of the neck, when the resulting deformity (which is that of the Charlcombe skull) is designated annular by Dr. Gosse; or is carried under the chin and jaw, when it is termed bilobed by the same writer. 1863 September, John Thurnam, “XXII.—On Synostosis of the Cranial Bones, Especially the Parietals, Regarded as a Race-character in One Class of Ancient British and in African Skulls”, in G[eorge] Busk et al., editors, The Natural History Review: A Quarterly Journal of Biological Science, number XVIII, London, Edinburgh: Williams and Norgate,[…], published April 1865, →OCLC, page 265
      The ophthalmic division supplies sensation from the eyebrows to the coronal suture. The sensory innervation stops at the corona, not at the hairline, and this fact may help one to differentiate a true abnormality from a factitious one, since people who are “faking” sensory loss more often lose sensation at the hairline. 2013, Eric S. Hsu, Charles Argoff, Katherine E. Galluzzi, Raphael J. Leo, Andrew Dubin, “Head Pain: Trigeminal Neuralgia”, in Problem-Based Pain Management, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire: Cambridge University Press, section 2 (Head Pain), page 27
   2. The external (supragingival) portion of the tooth, covered by enamel; the crown.
      The solids are derived from the fluids. In the first rudiments of the gelatinous embryo, they gradually commence in their respective situations, and differ infinitely in their degrees of cohesion, from the soft and almost pulpy medullary matter of the brain, to the vitreous substance of the corona of the teeth. 1817, J. Fred. Blumenbach [i.e., Johann Friedrich Blumenbach], “Sect. III. Of the Solids in General, and of the Mucous Web in Particular.”, in John Elliotson, transl., The Institutions of Physiology[…], 2nd edition, London: […] Bensley and Son,[…], for E. Cox and Son,[…], →OCLC, paragraph 17, page 12
   3. The circumference of the base of the glans penis in human males.
      The first line of injection with a clean 1% solution of cocain, or 2% eucain is began, posterior to the ridge caused by the corona, on the dorsum. 1907, C. H. Shutt, “A New Simple Technique for Circumcision and Some Advantages Gained in Genito-urinary Work—a Practical Demonstration of the Technique”, in Tho[ma]s A. Hopkins, editor, The Medical Fortnightly, St. Louis, Mo.: Fortnightly Press Co., →OCLC, page 233, column 1
3. (architecture) The large, flat, projecting member of a cornice which crowns the entablature, situated above the bed moulding and below the cymatium.
   Though somewhat verbose, the author is specific in his instruction that the S-shaped crown molding, the cymarecta, caps the top of the pediment and is not returned on the horizontal corona. 2018, John Milnes Baker, “Georgian 1715–1780”, in American House Styles: A Concise Guide, The Countryman Press, W[illiam] W[arder] Norton & Company, page 39
4. (astronomy)
   1. The luminous plasma atmosphere of the Sun (the solar corona) or other star, extending millions of kilometres into space, most easily seen during a total solar eclipse.
      My investigations seem to prove conclusively that the theoretical corona is caused by light emitted and reflected from streams of matter ejected from the Sun by forces which, in general, act along lines normal to the surface. These forces are most active near the center of each Sun-spot zone. 11 April 1890, J[ohn] M[artin] Schaeberle, “A Mechanical Theory of the Solar Corona”, in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, volume I, number 6, London: Royal Astronomical Society,[…], →ISSN, →OCLC, page 372
      The corona is a high-temperature portion of the Sun's outer atmosphere, beginning slightly above the visible surface and extending hundreds of thousands of kilometers, or further, into interplanetary space. 2010, Leon Golub, Jay M[yron] Pasachoff, “Introduction”, in The Solar Corona, 2nd edition, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire: Cambridge University Press, page 1
   2. (also geology) An oval-shaped astrogeological feature, present on both the planet Venus and Uranus's moon Miranda, probably formed by upwellings of warm material below the surface.
      The area density of impact craters on the surfaces of the coronas suggests that the episode of tidal heating occurred approximately one billion years ago[…]. 2007, Gunter Faure, Teresa M. Mensing, “Uranus: What Happened Here?”, in Introduction to Planetary Science: The Geological Perspective, Dordrecht: Springer, page 379, column 1
5. (by extension) Any luminous or crownlike ring around an object or person.
   It looked like a miniaturized version of Hiroshima. Fires burned here and there. […] His once and future presidential palace was a crater ringed by a corona of flaming debris. 1980, Philip Caputo, Horn of Africa, 1st Vintage Contemporaries edition, New York, N.Y.: Vintage Books, published February 2002, page 446
   [Dale] Hawkins is a tall man, angular and knobby, with a rubbery, animated face and a corona of wavy gray hair, which he wears wet-combed back in a modified old-time pompadour. 2005 summer, Lauren Wilcox, “Dale Hawkins: That’s Guitar Playing”, in Oxford American: A Magazine of the South (Southern Music Issue; 7), number 50, Oxford, Miss.: Oxford American, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2020-10-27, pages 16–20
   Vigil sat across from her, leaning against the wall of what looked like a cave, his corona glowing dimly. 2015, Rawles Marie Lumumba, chapter 4, in Duskfall (Nightshade; book 1), s.l.]: Takaboo Books
6. (biology) Any appendage of an organism that resembles a crown or corona (sense 4.1).
   1. (botany) A ring or set of appendages of adaxial tissue arising from the corolla or the outer edge of the stamens, present in some plants (Narcissus, Passiflora, etc.); a paraperigonium.
      Pentándria, Digynia. All as in Stapèlia; but the corolla is tuberculate, and the branches of the plant warted; and the outer corona of the corolla lacerately multifid. 1838, George Don, A General History of the Dichleamydeous Plants,[…], volume IV (Corollifloræ), London: […] [Gilbert & Rivington] for J. G. and F. Rivington; […], page 122, column 2
   2. (zoology)
      1. An annular ciliated organ on the head of rotifers, used for locomotion and sweeping food into the mouth.
         It [Epiphanes] has a ciliated corona at its anterior end and tapers to a narrow foot at the posterior end. The cilia of the corona are arranged more or less in two rings, with the mouth in the gap between them. 1979, R[obert] McNeill Alexander, “Rotifers”, in The Invertebrates, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire: Cambridge University Press, page 230
      2. The main body of the test of an echinoid, consisting of ambulacral and interambulacral areas.
         In coronae of the sea urchin Echinocyamus pusillus in the marine bed overlying the oncoid layer, an original Mg_(0.10–0.13)-calcite was gradually replaced during diagenesis by a Mg_(0.03–0.05)-calcite[…]. 1983, D. K. Richter, R. Sedat, “Brackish-water Oncoids Composed of Blue-green and Red Algae from a Pleistocene Terrace near Corinth, Greece”, in Tadeusz M. Peryt, editor, Coated Grains, Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer-Verlag, →DOI, part IV (Oncoids), page 306
      3. The crown of a crinoid, consisting of a cuplike central body (theca) and a set of arms.
         A normal Crinoid (Fig. III.) consists of a “crown” (corona) attached by its dorsal (i.e. aboral) extremity to a “stem” (columna), which is fixed to the sea-floor or to some solid body by a “root” (radix). 1900, F[rancis] A[rthur] Bather, J. W. Gregory, E[dwin] S[tephen] Goodrich, “The Crinoidea”, in E[dwin] Ray Lankester, editor, A Treatise on Zoology, part III (The Echinoderma), London: Adam & Charles Black, →OCLC, page 99
   3. (virology) A fringe of large, bulbous surface projections on coronaviruses, formed by viral spike peplomers, creating an appearance reminiscent of the solar corona.
      Coronaviruses are medium-sized, enveloped, ribonucleic acid viruses which, in negatively stained preparations, appear round and bear a corona of irregular, petal-shaped surface projections. 1972 October, Lawrence S. Sturman, Kenneth K. Takemoto, “Enhanced Growth of a Murine Coronavirus in Transformed Mouse Cells”, in Infection and Immunity, volume 6, number 4, Washington, D.C.: American Society for Microbiology, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2020-03-22, page 501, column 1
7. (electricity) A luminous appearance caused by corona discharge, often seen as a bluish glow in the air adjacent to pointed metal conductors carrying high voltages.
   An appearance of a corona may produce useful or undesirable effects. For instance, a corona arising spontaneously around high-voltage wires of an electrical power transmission line results in a loss of electrical energy. On the other hand, coronas are widely used in many practical applications like dust collection with electrical precipitators, atmospheric pressure non-thermal plasma surface treatment of polymers, cleaning of exhausted gases, etc. 2004, U[lrich] Kogelschatz, Yu S. Akishev, A. P. Napartovich, “History of Non-equilibrium Air Discharges”, in K. H. Becker, U[lrich] Kogelschatz, K. H. Schoenbach, R. J. Barker, editors, Non-equilibrium Air Plasmas at Atmospheric Pressure (Institute of Physics Series in Plasma Physics), Bristol, Philadelphia, Pa.: Institute of Physics Publishing, page 42
8. (meteorology) A circle or set of circles visible around a bright celestial object, especially the Sun or the Moon, attributable to an optical phenomenon produced by the diffraction of its light by small water droplets or tiny ice crystals.
   https://books.google.com/books?id=RhboPfYELMsC&pg=PA49 page 49 Upon this true "mackarel sky" was depicted one of those glorious coronæ, only seen at great elevations or in high Latitudes. […] https://books.google.com/books?id=RhboPfYELMsC&pg=PA50 page 50 The corona was composed of two colours, violet on the edge nearest to the sun and red on the outer edge, the two colours blending together and forming a neutral tint in the middle of the corona; the order here observed with regard to the colours is similar to that observed in the rainbow. 1854, Walter Stanhope Sherwill, “Notes upon Some Atmospherical Phenomena Observed at Darjiling in the Himalayah Mountains, during the Summer of 1852”, in Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, volume XXIII, number LXV, Calcutta: […] J. Thomas, Baptist Mission Press, published 1855, →OCLC, pages 49 and 50
   https://books.google.com/books?id=TFpDAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA214 page 214, paragraph 423 The sun and moon, when partially covered by light, fleecy clouds, are often seen encircled by one or more colored rings, which are called coronæ. […] In order to examine coronæ about the sun, it is best to view them by reflection from a blackened mirror, by which means the brilliancy of the sun's light is very much reduced. […] https://books.google.com/books?id=TFpDAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA215 page 215, paragraph 425 Coronæ are produced by the diffraction of the rays of light in their passage through the small intervals between the particles of condensed vapor in a cloud. 1868, Elias Loomis, “Optical Meteorology”, in A Treatise on Meteorology.[…], New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers,[…], →OCLC, section IV (Coronæ), pages 214 and 215
   The increasing light eventually erases the moon's glowing corona, her pendant chandelier of light pales into insignificance as the new day breaks. 2013, Alfred Grossmith Mason, “14 September 1942”, in Julie Grossmith Deltrice, editor, Arctic Warriors: A Personal Account of Convoy PQ18, Barnsley, South Yorkshire: Pen & Sword Maritime, Pen & Sword Books, page 55
9. (mineralogy) A mineral zone, consisting of one or more minerals, which surrounds another mineral or lies at the interface of two minerals, typically in a radial arrangement; a reaction rim.
   Green hornblende is abundant at the rims of chlorite coronas in contact with amphibole-filled cracks, whereas it is minor (but not absent) in coronas in contact with chlorite-filled cracks. 2017, J. Theo Kloprogge, Robert Lavinsky, “Introduction: Geological Examples”, in Photo Atlas of Mineral Pseudomorphism, Amsterdam, Kidlington, Oxfordshire: Elsevier, figure 1.45 caption, page 67
10. (pathology) A manifestation of secondary syphilis, consisting of papular lesions along the hairline, often bordering the scalp in the manner of a crown.
    Jack had a moſt ſcandalous tongue, and perſuaded Peg that all mankind, beſides himſelf, were pox'd by that ſcarlet-faced whore, Signiora Bubonia. “As for his brother Lord Peter, the tokens were evident on him, blotches, ſcabs, and the corona.[…]” [1750?], [John Arbuthnot], “[The History of John Bull.] Jack’s Charms, or the Method by which He Gained Peg’s Heart.”, in The History of John Bull.[…], London: D[aniel] Midwinter and A. Tonson[…], →OCLC, part II, page 60
11. (Ancient Rome, historical) A crown or garland bestowed among the Romans as a reward for distinguished services.
    From the remark of Servius [i.e., Maurus Servius Honoratus] (ad Aen. v. 269) it appears that coronae adorned with lemnisci were a greater distinction than those without them. 1842, Leonhard Schmitz, “λημνίσκος [lēmnískos, LEMNISCUS]”, in William Smith, editor, A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, London: […] [Samuel Bentley] for Taylor and Walton,[…], →OCLC, page 557, column 2
    Funerary inscriptions of soldiers under the Empire are frequently accompanied by representation of the dona militaria awarded during service. We instantly recognise depictions of torques, armillae, phalerae (often attached to a special harness), and various types of coronae. 1997 January, Lawrence Keppie, “Military Service in the Late Republic: The Evidence of Inscriptions and Sculpture”, in Journal of Roman Military Equipment Studies, volume 8, Ryton, Tyne and Wear: M. C. Bishop, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 8, column 1
    Though men typically did not wear hats, they could wear a ceremonial form of headwear known as a corona, or crown. Like many areas of Roman dress, there were strict rules about wearing coronas. 2004, Sara Pendergast, Tom Pendergast, edited by Sarah Hermsen, Fashion, Costume, and Culture: Clothing, Headwear, Body Decorations, and Footwear through the Ages, volume 1, Detroit, Mich.: UXL, page 183

verb

1. (transitive, rare) To surround with a luminous or crownlike ring like the solar corona.
   The belly dancer shimmied on to the tiny floor, all flashing eyes, black hair coronaed with winking brilliants, undulating bare flesh with tasselled breasts and a turquoise G-string and an imitation ruby in her navel: she was barefooted, wearing a massive glittering anklet which made her look very Circassian and wanton. 1977, Richard Beilby, Gunner: A Novel of the Retreat from Crete, London: Angus and Robertson, page 285
   He was surrounded, encauled, coronaed with whispering figures. They fleeted in and out of visibility, made of dark light. They entered his body and exited it, they faded up, they ebbed out. 2010, China Miéville, chapter 39, in Kraken: An Anatomy, New York, N.Y.: Ballantine Books, page 234
   The creatures lay with the humans, dead islanders alongside them. They'd worked with them. Worshipped with them, the scientists said, looking anew at the shards of illustration still visible, the extraterrestrial and the human at prayer together, coronaed, altar-top boxes glowing. 2015, China Miéville, “In the Slopes”, in Three Moments of an Explosion: Stories, London: Picador, pages 64–65

Etymology 2

table A clipping of coronavirus, ultimately from etymology 1.

noun

1. (informal, also attributively) A coronavirus, especially SARS-CoV-2.
   The recent surge of deaths due to corona reveals the shortcomings of our current healthcare system.
   Similar to the way in which EBV nuclear antigens can be identified by immunofluorescence microscopy in NPC tumor cells with the EBNA test, corona antigens can be demonstrated in the cytoplasm of tumor cells of the same patient. A possible non-specific reaction could be excluded by use of animal corona antisera. 1981 January, W. Arnold, M. Klein, J. B. Wang, W. A. K. Schmidt, H. J. Trampisch, “Coronavirus-associated Antibodies in Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma and Infectious Mononucleosis”, in European Archives of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology, volume 232, number 2, Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer, →DOI, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2020-05-09, page 175
   Although this study was restricted to the human coronaviruses, these basic properties apply to all known animal and human coronas (results not shown). 16 April 2015, Ben Berkhout, Formijn van Hemert, “On the Biased Nucleotide Composition of the Human Coronavirus RNA Genome”, in Virus Research: An International Journal of Molecular and Cellular Virology, volume 202, Amsterdam: Elsevier, →DOI, →ISSN, →OCLC, →PMID, archived from the original on 2021-03-16, page 46
   He collapsed at the approach to his village. The villagers would not help, not admit him anywhere in. They were spooked, he may have been carrying corona. He died, and his remains were not let in either. Doctors were called, a test was done. The cadaver tested negative. 5 May 2020, Sankarshan Thakur, “A mildewed life: State of play: The migrant is trapped between the home and the world”, in The Telegraph, Kolkata, West Bengal: ABP, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2020-05-10
2. (informal, also attributively) A disease caused by a coronavirus, especially COVID-19.
   She caught corona last week.
   The MERS outbreak in the hospital created widespread fear and panic among healthcare providers and other employees. […] For example, participants’ traumatic experience is illustrated by the quote below: / “Neglect is pain … prejudice is there, it hurts, also … unbelievable human ignorance. There was one person who is in administration here, who was scared to call me because she might get Corona over the phone.” 2018 March–April, Adel F. Almutairi, Abdallah A. Adlan, Hanan H. Balkhy, Oraynab A. Abbas, Alexander M. Clark, “‘It feels like I’m the dirtiest person in the world.’: Exploring the Experiences of Healthcare Providers who Survived MERS-CoV in Saudi Arabia”, in Journal of Infection and Public Health, volume 11, number 2, Amsterdam: Elsevier, →DOI, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 188, column 2
   His wife, Varda, told Geo News: “Tariq passed away in the blessed month of Ramadan in the line of duty. Even after he had developed symptoms of corona and isolated at home, he continued to do telephone clinics.” 8 May 2020, Nazia Parveen, “Six-week-old baby believed to be England’s youngest coronavirus victim”, in Katharine Viner, editor, The Guardian, London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2021-03-09

Etymology 3

Borrowed from Italian corona.

noun

1. (poetry) A series of sonnets linked together such that the last word of each is the first word of the next.
   A favorite and most attractive combination is that of the corona or series of sonnets, employed to frame or develop some one theme. A list of these corone is given by Biadene, who selects and publishes from among them a series of three by Petrarch, and the famous corona of the months by Folgore da San Gemignano. 1889 May, F. M. Warren, “The Sonnet. Morfologia del Sonetto nei secoli xiii e xiv. L. Biadene [Studj di Filologia Romanza, Fasc. 10.]”, in A. Marshall Elliott, editor, Modern Language Notes, volume IV, Baltimore, Md.: Johns Hopkins University Press], →ISSN, →OCLC, column 308
   But the poets of Siena, and particularly the Academy of the Intronati, found the proper way of constructing coronas—since the ones mentioned above should really be called sequences ['catene'] rather than coronas. 1997, Michael R. G. Spiller, The Sonnet Sequence: A Study of Its Strategies (Studies in Literary Themes and Genres; 13), New York, N.Y.: Twayne Publishers, page 144
   [Lady Mary] Wroth alludes to these contexts as the corona of sonnets that crowns the sequence opens: "In this strang labourinth how shall I turne?" (Wroth, Poems 127). 2000, Mary B. Moore, “The Labyrinth of Style: Lady Mary Wroth and the Idea of Petrarchism”, in Desiring Voices: Women Sonneteers and Petrarchism, Carbondale, Edwardsville, Ill.: Southern Illinois University Press, page 125
   Both sets of echoes derive from the poets' first poems, and since first poems in Petrarchan sequences set stylistic, tonal, and thematic expectations, Robert [Sidney]'s double allusion to first poems should color readings of this, the first poem of his corona. 2015, Mary B. Moore, “Robert Sidney’s Poetry”, in Margaret P. Hannay, Mary Ellen Lamb, Michael G. Brennan, editors, The Ashgate Research Companion to The Sidneys, 1500–1700, volume 2 (Literature), Farnham, Surrey, Burlington, Vt.: Ashgate Publishing, part VI (Poetry), page 250

Etymology 4

Borrowed from Spanish La Corona (literally “The Crown”), a brand of cigars from Havana, Cuba.

noun

1. A long, straight-sided cigar with a blunt, rounded end.
   HOWARD: [Entering; cheerfully] Got your coronas, Mr. Goldman! / GOLDMAN: [Glumly, taking the proffered cigars] Thanks, Howie. [Puts all but one in pocket.] / HOWARD: Where's Ma? / GOLDMAN: [Indicating with cigar] Inside the bedroom. 1977, Samuel Birnkrant, Mama, Say ‘I Do’: (Formerly Titled ‘A Whisper in God’s Ear’): A Comedy in Three Acts, Schulenburg, Tex.: I. E. Clark Publications, act I, page 22