pennyroyal

[ pen-ee-roi-uh l ]

/ ˌpɛn iˈrɔɪ əl /

noun

an aromatic Old World plant, Mentha pulegium, of the mint family, having clusters of small purple flowers and yielding a pungent essential oil used medicinally and as an insect repellent.

Also called mock pennyroyal. a similar, related plant, Hedeoma pulegioides, of eastern North America, having bluish flowers growing from the leaf axils.

any of several other aromatic plants of the mint family.

Nearby words

penny-farthing, penny-pinching, penny-wise, pennyboy, pennycress, pennyroyal, pennyweight, pennywort, pennyworth, penobscot, penobscot bay

Origin of pennyroyal

1520–30; penny + royal; replacing late Middle English puliol real < Anglo-French; Middle French poliol (< Latin *pūlēgiōlum, diminutive of pūlēgium pennyroyal) + real, earlier form of royal

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for pennyroyal

And Kurt was so happy with it that a few months later he asked me to do another video for them for a song called “Pennyroyal Tea.”
How Nirvana Shot the ‘Heart-Shaped Box’ Video|Andrew Romano|September 13, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Many old-fashioned folks in the Pennyroyal Region still think so.
Oldfield|Nancy Huston Banks
An old man, dressed in a suit of very antique butternut clothes, stood at the sill, holding forward a bunch of pennyroyal.
Meadow Grass|Alice Brown
A small amount of oil of pennyroyal sprinkled around the room will drive away the mosquitoes.
Burroughs' Encyclopaedia of Astounding Facts and Useful Information, 1889|Barkham Burroughs

It was impossible to eat or sleep without some defence, and our pennyroyal salve was invaluable.
The Trail of the Goldseekers|Hamlin Garland
Watercress grows in many springs, and there are rosebushes, and pennyroyal, and wild marjoram.
Original Narratives of Early American History|Vaca and Others

British Dictionary definitions for pennyroyal

pennyroyal

/ (ˌpɛnɪˈrɔɪəl) /

noun

a Eurasian plant, Mentha pulegium, with hairy leaves and small mauve flowers, that yields an aromatic oil used in medicine: family Lamiaceae (labiates)

Also called: mock pennyroyal a similar and related plant, Hedeoma pulegioides, of E North America

Word Origin for pennyroyal

C16: variant of Anglo-Norman puliol real, from Old French pouliol (from Latin pūleium pennyroyal) + real royal

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