trumpet of death

noun

plural trumpets of death

: black trumpet

You might see cremini (just a baby portobello), or porcini, or cep, or the French trumpet of death, which is blackish and trumpet-shaped, but not deathly.

—Karen Mamone, Hartford (Connecticut) Courant, 31 Jan. 1999

Called trompettes de la mort in French, or trumpets of death, they are in the same family as chanterelles and share their fluted shape, but they're black and slightly thinner on the stem.

—Tara Duggan, San Francisco Chronicle, 25 Feb. 2004

Word History

First Known Use

1977, in the meaning defined above

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