Iris

n. pl. E. Irises (#), L. Irides (#).

1. (Class. Myth.) The goddess of the rainbow, and swift-footed messenger of the gods.
2. The rainbow.
3. An appearance resembling the rainbow; a prismatic play of colors.
4. (Anat.) The contractile membrane perforated by the pupil, and forming the colored portion of the eye. See Eye.
5. (Bot.) A genus of plants having showy flowers and bulbous or tuberous roots, of which the flower-de-luce (fleur-de-lis), orris, and other species of flag are examples. See Illust. of Flower-de-luce.
6. (Her.) See Fleur-de-lis, 2.
7. (Zoöl.) the inner circle of an oscillated color spot.
8. same as iris diaphragm.