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fleabane

[flee-beyn]
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noun
  1. any of various composite plants, as Pulicaria dysenterica, of Europe, or Erigeron philadelphicus, of the U.S., reputed to destroy or drive away fleas.
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Origin of fleabane

First recorded in 1540–50; flea + bane
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for fleabane

Historical Examples

  • Our fleabane is a troublesome weed at times, but good husbandry has little to dread from it.

    A Year in the Fields

    John Burroughs

British Dictionary definitions for fleabane

fleabane

noun
  1. any of several plants of the genus Erigeron, such as E. acer, having purplish tubular flower heads with orange centres: family Asteraceae (composites)
  2. any of several plants of the related genus Pulicaria, esp the Eurasian P. dysenterica, which has yellow daisy-like flower heads
  3. Canadian fleabane a related plant, Conyza (or Erigeron) canadensis, with small white tubular flower headsUS name: horseweed
  4. any of various other plants reputed to ward off fleas
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Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012