black snakeroot

American  

noun

1. a tall bugbane, Cimicifuga racemosa, of the buttercup family, of eastern North America, having thin, tapering, toothed or deeply cut leaflets and branched clusters of small, white flowers.

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Etymology

Origin of black snakeroot

An Americanism dating back to 1690–1700

Example Sentences

Sometimes folks got black snakeroot from the woods, biled it, and gave the tea to sick folks; that was to clean off the stomach.

From Slave Narratives: a Folk History of Slavery in the United States From Interviews with Former Slaves Georgia Narratives, Part 4 by Work Projects Administration

Make red or black snakeroot tea to cure fever and malaria, but git de roots in de spring when de sap am high.

From Slave Narratives: a Folk History of Slavery in the United States From Interviews with Former Slaves Texas Narratives, Part 1 by Work Projects Administration