aphrodisiac n.

Greek goddess of love and beauty, personification of female grace, 1650s; the ancients derived her name from Greek aphros "foam," from the story of her birth, but the word is perhaps rather from Phoenician Ashtaroth (Assyrian Ishtar). Beekes writes, "As the goddess seems to be of oriental origin ..., the name probably comes from the East too. .... It may have entered Greek via another language." He concludes, "[I]t seems possible that the name came from the one languages [sic] which on historical grounds we should expect to be relevant: Cypriot Phoenician."

Associated by the Romans with their Venus, who originally was a less-important goddess. It was pronounced in 17c. English to rhyme with night, right, etc.

"diminishing the sexual appetite," 1823, from Greek anaphroditos "without sexual desire," or from an- (1) "not, without" + aphrodisiac. Related: Anaphrodisia; anaphroditic; anaphroditous.

1719, "used against sexual appetite;" 1742, "used against venereal disease;" from anti- + Greek aphrodisios "venereal" (see aphrodisiac). From 1753 as a noun, "medicine used against venereal disease." Antaphroditic is from 1706 as a noun, "medicine having the power to mitigate venereal disease;" 1755 as an adjective.