lousewort

[ lous-wurt, -wawrt ]

/ ˈlaʊsˌwɜrt, -ˌwɔrt /

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noun

any plant belonging to the genus Pedicularis, of the figwort family, as the wood betony, formerly supposed to cause lice in sheep feeding on it: one species, P. furbishiae(Furbish lousewort ), of parts of Maine and New Brunswick, Canada, having finely toothed leaves and a cluster of yellow flowers, is endangered and was thought to be extinct until specimens were discovered in 1946 and again in 1976.

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Origin of lousewort

First recorded in 1570–80; louse + wort²

Words nearby lousewort

lourie, loury, louse, louser, louse up, lousewort, lousy, lousy with, lout, Louth, loutish

How to use lousewort in a sentence

The Lousewort is a small plant and does not rise very far above the ground.
Flowers Shown to the Children|C. E. Smith
The stem of the Lousewort is hairy, and the leaves grow very close to it.
Flowers Shown to the Children|C. E. Smith
The flowers of this Lousewort are yellowish and occur in crowded heads on low spreading stems, 4-6 in.
Flowers of Mountain and Plain|Edith S. Clements

British Dictionary definitions for lousewort

lousewort

/ (ˈlaʊsˌwɜːt) /

noun

any of various N temperate scrophulariaceous plants of the genus Pedicularis, having spikes of white, yellow, or mauve flowersSee also betony (def. 3)

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