Bur"net (?), n. [OE. burnet burnet; also, brownish (the plant perh. being named from its color), fr. F. brunet, dim. of brun brown; cf. OF. brunete a sort of flower. See Brunette.] Bot.
A genus of perennial herbs (Poterium); especially, P.Sanguisorba, the common, or garden, burnet.
Burnet moth Zool., in England, a handsome moth (Zygaena filipendula), with crimson spots on the wings. -- Burnet saxifrage. Bot. See Saxifrage. -- Canadian burnet, a marsh plant (Poterium Canadensis). -- Great burnet, Wild burnet, Poterium (or Sanguisorba) oficinalis.
© Webster 1913.