nightshade
Americannoun
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any of various plants of the genus Solanum, especially the black nightshade or the bittersweet.
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any of various other related plants, as the deadly nightshade.
noun
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any of various solanaceous plants, such as deadly nightshade, woody nightshade, and black nightshade
Etymology
Origin of nightshade
before 1000; Middle English; Old English nihtscada. See night, shade
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.
The plant is part of the black nightshade family and is harmful if eaten, especially its unripened berries or leaves, and can cause nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea, trembling, paralysis, coma or even death.
From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 21, 2024
The exact mechanism that "switched on" this enzyme in roots remains unknown, paving the way for the Last lab to continue to unpack the evolutionary and metabolic secrets of the nightshade family.
From Science Daily • Apr. 24, 2024
At the farm’s labeled U-pick areas, visitors can pick a variety of produce for free, including tomatoes, cucumbers, African nightshade, amaranth, collards, corn and potatoes.
From Seattle Times • Sep. 8, 2023
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
The nightshade smells of earth, damp, loamy, pungent, and of cat piss.
From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood
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.
