pellitory

British  

/ -trɪ, ˈpɛlɪtərɪ /

noun

1. any of various urticaceous plants of the S and W European genus Parietaria, esp P. diffusa ( pellitory-of-the-wall or wall pellitory ), that grow in crevices and have long narrow leaves and small pink flowers

2. a small Mediterranean plant, Anacyclus pyrethrum, the root of which contains an oil formerly used to relieve toothache: family Asteraceae (composites)

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Etymology

Origin of pellitory

C16 peletre, from Old French piretre, from Latin pyrethrum, from Greek purethron, from pur fire, from the hot pungent taste of the root

Example Sentences

Two years after the army's evacuation, the entire perimeter wall of the barracks was covered with more than twenty different species: among them, capers, snapdragons, lots of spreading pellitory, and several small ferns.

From Salon • Mar. 22, 2020

So I brought her what she sought, and she laid the pellitory in the pot with the vinegar and set it on the fire, till it was thoroughly boiled.

From The Book of the Thousand Nights and a Night — Volume 04 by Burton, Richard Francis, Sir

Polygamia: Flowers bearing stamens and pistils, flowers bearing stamens only, and flowers bearing pistils only, all on the same individual, or on different individuals of the same species; as in the ash and pellitory.

From Lives of Eminent Zoologists, from Aristotle to Linnæus with Introductory remarks on the Study of Natural History by MacGillivray, William

The best pellitory I ever plucked out of a wall.

From Hypolympia Or, The Gods in the Island, an Ironic Fantasy by Gosse, Edmund

It should be adorned on this side with roses, lilies, and the marigold; on that side with parsley, cost, fennel, southernwood, coriander, sage, savery, hyssop, mint, vine, dettany, pellitory, lettuce, cresses, and the peony.

From Library of the World's Best Literature, Ancient and Modern — Volume 4 by Mabie, Hamilton Wright