deadly nightshade

American  

noun

1. belladonna.

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deadly nightshade British  

noun

1. Also called: belladonna.   dwale.  a poisonous Eurasian solanaceous plant, Atropa belladonna, having dull purple bell-shaped flowers and small very poisonous black berries

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Etymology

Origin of deadly nightshade

First recorded in 1570–80

Example Sentences

The Solanaceae family is a vast one with more than 2,500 members including tomatoes, potatoes, chillies, aubergines, peppers, tobacco, deadly nightshade and henbane.

From BBC • Jul. 10, 2023

Italian women — and later, women in Victorian England — would squeeze drops of deadly nightshade into their eyes to dilate their pupils for a striking, wide-eyed look they thought was seductive.

From Salon • Jul. 26, 2021

On one challenging 3½-mile hike, as we examined a chain cholla cactus and discussed its penchant for sticking to clothing, one of the hikers spotted a deadly nightshade plant with its tempting, poisonous berries.

From Washington Post • Oct. 1, 2020

For this module, the authors engineered their strain to express an enzyme called PLA UDP-glucosyltransferase, which is found in the deadly nightshade plant Atropa belladonna and catalyses the production of PLA glucoside.

From Nature • Sep. 1, 2020

Along the edge of the path is a thicket of weeds: goldenrod, ragweed, asters, burdocks, deadly nightshade, its berries red as valentine candies.

From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood