wormwood

noun

worm·​wood ˈwərm-ˌwu̇d 

1

: artemisia

especially : a European plant (Artemisia absinthium) that has silvery silky-haired leaves and drooping yellow flower heads and yields a bitter dark green oil used in absinthe

2

: something bitter or grievous : bitterness

Examples of wormwood in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The reasons for the ban may have been due to its high levels of alcohol (72%) or the fact that thujone within wormwood is considered a neurotoxin. —Tom Mullen, Forbes, 3 Nov. 2024

By Nicholas Lemann Among Joe Biden’s afflictions and miseries, his wormwood and gall, there are the insults (about his diminished capacities), and then there are the compliments unpaid (about his achievements). —Ian Crouch, The New Yorker, 29 Oct. 2024

Absinthe was banned in the United States until 2007, because one of its ingredients, wormwood, can cause hallucinations if the drinker consumes enough of it. —Maggie Menderski, The Courier-Journal, 29 Oct. 2024

Complementing the lavender is an array of medicinal and aromatic herbs that include chamomile, echinacea, sage and wormwood. —Leslie Katz, Forbes, 14 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English wormwode, folk-etymological alteration of warmode, wermod, going back to Old English wermōd, going back to West Germanic *wermōda- (whence Old Saxon wermōda, Old High German wermuota), perhaps going back to a derivative of a base *wermo- "bitter," dissimilated from dialectal Indo-European *(s)u̯eru̯o- (whence Welsh chwerw "bitter," Old Irish serb)

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

wormwood

noun

worm·​wood ˈwərm-ˌwu̇d 

1

: a European plant that is related to the daisies and yields a bitter dark green oil

2

: something bitter or painful

it was wormwood for him to accept charity

Medical Definition

wormwood

noun

worm·​wood ˈwərm-ˌwu̇d 

: artemisia sense 2

especially : a European plant (Artemisia absinthium) yielding a bitter slightly aromatic dark green oil used in absinthe