aconite

American  

[ak-uh-nahyt] / ˈæk əˌnaɪt /

Also aconitum

noun

1. any plant belonging to the genus Aconitum, of the buttercup family, having irregular flowers usually in loose clusters, including species with poisonous and medicinal properties.

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aconite British  

/ ˈækəˌnaɪt, ˌækəˈnaɪtəm, ˌækəˈnɪtɪk /

noun

1. any of various N temperate plants of the ranunculaceous genus Aconitum, such as monkshood and wolfsbane, many of which are poisonous Compare winter aconite

2. the dried poisonous root of many of these plants, sometimes used as an antipyretic

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Other Word Forms

• aconitic adjective

Etymology

Origin of aconite

1570–80; < Latin aconītum < Greek akónīton leopard's-bane, wolfsbane

Example Sentences

Diners who fell quickly ill after eating at a restaurant outside Toronto likely ate food contaminated with toxic aconite, Canada health officials say.

From BBC • Sep. 1, 2022

In 2017, a San Francisco woman died after consuming herbal tea that had traces of aconite in it.

From BBC • Sep. 1, 2022

Diners presented to hospitals nearby with symptoms resembling that of aconite poisoning.

From BBC • Sep. 1, 2022

Dr David Juurlink, an internal medicine physician and toxicology researcher in Toronto, said the concern is that, when not processed thoroughly, toxic bits of the aconite will remain.

From BBC • Sep. 1, 2022

From the roots and leaves of A. napellus, the officinal species, supposed to be native of Britain, is made the powerful drug, aconite.

From The Wild Flowers of California: Their Names, Haunts, and Habits by Parsons, Mary Elizabeth