quincunx Meaning, Definition & Usage

Quin"cunx noun
Etymology
L., fr. quingue five + uncia an ounce. The quincunx was marked by five small spots or balls. See Five, and Ounce the weight.
Definitions
  1. An arrangement of things by fives in a square or a rectangle, one being placed at each corner and one in the middle; especially, such an arrangement of trees repeated indefinitely, so as to form a regular group with rows running in various directions.
  2. (Astrol.) The position of planets when distant from each other five signs, or 150°. Hutton.
  3. (Bot.) A quincuncial arrangement, as of the parts of a flower in æstivation. See Quincuncial, 2.

Webster 1913