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rosary pea

American

noun

a woody tropical vine, Abrus precatorius , of the legume family, having extremely poisonous scarlet and black seeds that are used for beads and a root used as a substitute for licorice.

Etymology

Origin of rosary pea

First recorded in 1865–70

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.