poultice

American  

[pohl-tis] / ˈpoʊl tɪs /

noun

1. a soft, moist mass of cloth, bread, meal, herbs, etc., applied hot as a medicament to the body.

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verb (used with object)

poulticed, poulticing

1. to apply a poultice to.

poultice British  

/ ˈpəʊltɪs /

noun

1. Also called: cataplasm.  med a local moist and often heated application for the skin consisting of substances such as kaolin, linseed, or mustard, used to improve the circulation, treat inflamed areas, etc

2. slang a large sum of money, esp a debt

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Other Word Forms

• unpoulticed adjective

Etymology

Origin of poultice

1535–45; earlier pultes, plural (taken as singular) of Latin puls (stem pult- ) thick pap. See pulse ²

Example Sentences

“And thanks to the hair poultice, you appeared to be one Swanburne girl among many,” Miss Mortimer interjected.

From Literature

The one time she had stopped using the poultice, her hair had soon begun to reveal its true color: a striking reddish brown, quite like the color of the children’s hair, and wonderfully shiny, too.

From Literature

“It is just as well,” she thought ruefully, as she worked a fresh coat of Miss Mortimer’s poultice into her hair.

From Literature

The truth was, Penelope had not bothered to open the last packet of hair poultice that Miss Mortimer had sent.

From Literature

I was a middle-class kid from New Jersey, but like a poultice, this ancient, colonized country drew out an answering difference from my bones.

From Salon