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

The filament is generally continuous from one end to the other, but in some cases it is bent or jointed, becoming geniculate; at other times, as in the pellitory, it is spiral.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 10, Slice 5 "Fleury, Claude" to "Foraker" by Various

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

She picked a little piece of pellitory out of the breast-high wall in front of us.

From The Good Soldier by Ford, Ford Madox