The more commonly found form putti is the plural of the Italian word putto. The Italian word comes from the Latin word putus, meaning boy or child. Today, in Italian, putto means either toddler winged angel or, rarely, toddler boy.
What exactly is the difference between stalactites and stalagmites? Which one hangs above and which one stands up from the ground? Stalactites and stalagmites are what are known as speleothems, deposits of minerals that form into cave structures and line the insides of a cave. Stalactites are the formations that hang from the ceilings of caves like icicles, while stalagmites look like they're emerging from the ground and stand up like a traffic cone. Some may take thousands of years to form, while others can grow quite rapidly.
A stalactite also known as dripstone, is like a stone icicle on the ceiling of a limestone cave. It develops when water, in which minerals (usually primarily calcium carbonate) is dissolved, drips though cracks in cave ceiling. As the water falls, it leaves behind microscopic amounts of the mineral. Over time, this collects to form an icicle-like structure. Note that a stalagmite is like an upside-down stalactite growing up from the floor. When water drips from a stalactite and hits the cave floor, there is often a microscopic mineral deposit left there as well. This deposit builds up over time. It is possible, by the way, for a stalactite and stalagmite to meet, forming a mineral column.