coyotillo

American  

[koi-uh-til-oh, kaw-yaw-tee-yaw] / ˌkɔɪ əˈtɪl oʊ, ˌkɔ jɔˈti jɔ /

noun

coyotillos plural

1. a poisonous shrub with black berries, Karwinskia humboldtiana, of the buckthorn family, found in Mexico and the southwestern U.S.

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coyotillo British  

/ ˌkəʊjəʊˈtiːljəʊ /

noun

1. a thorny poisonous rhamnaceous shrub, Karwinskia humboldtiana of Mexico and the southwestern US, the berries of which cause paralysis

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• coyotillos
  plural

Etymology

Origin of coyotillo

First recorded in 1890–95; from Mexican Spanish: literally “little coyote,” equivalent to coyote + -illo diminutive suffix; see origin at coyote ( def. )