Indian turnip
Americannoun
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the jack-in-the-pulpit.
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its root.
Etymology
Origin of Indian turnip
An Americanism dating back to 1800–10
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Two birds on a stalk of Indian turnip.
From "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr
The United States Dispensatory and other works on pharmacy ascribe the acridity of the Indian turnip to an acrid, extremely volatile principle insoluble in water, and alcohol, but soluble in ether.
From Scientific American Supplement, No. 829, November 21, 1891 by Various
The same operations were repeated upon the Indian turnip with exactly similar results.
From Scientific American Supplement, No. 829, November 21, 1891 by Various
The Indian turnip or Jack-in-the-Pulpit is an interesting plant and a curiosity to many who never ramble in the woods to see it in its native abode.
From Mother's Remedies Over One Thousand Tried and Tested Remedies from Mothers of the United States and Canada by Ritter, Thomas Jefferson
They dug up, too, the root of the Indian turnip, an herb that burnt the mouth like fire, but which Henry said they could use, after soaking it a long time in water.
From The Young Trailers A Story of Early Kentucky by Altsheler, Joseph A. (Joseph Alexander)
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
