Vesta \Ves"ta\, n. [L. Vesta, akin to Gr. ? Vesta, ? the hearth of the house, and perhaps to Skr. ush to burn (see East), or perhaps to Skr. vas to dwell, and E. was.]

1. (Rom. Myth.) One of the great divinities of the ancient Romans, identical with the Greek Hestia. She was a virgin, and the goddess of the hearth; hence, also, of the fire on it, and the family round it.

2. (Astron.) An asteroid, or minor planet, discovered by Olbers in 1807.

3. A wax friction match. --Simmonds.

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)