St. John's wort
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of St. John's wort
First recorded in 1745–55; so named because it was traditionally gathered on St. John's Eve to ward off evil
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
A solitary figure who preferred working alone and needed large doses of St. John’s wort to get through days when his studio buzzed with people.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 4, 2025
St. John’s wort can also interact with many other medicines to reduce their effectiveness.
From Seattle Times • Dec. 29, 2021
Ingredient apps like Think Dirty help aficionados weigh the difference between mugwort and St. John’s wort.
From The Wall Street Journal • Aug. 9, 2018
The first one I drank was tangerine and black currant juice dosed with rhodiola, St. John’s wort and albizia, which some believe fight anxiety and depression.
From New York Times • Jul. 3, 2017
The ubiquitous dandelion is likewise golden; then we have birdsfoot trefoil, ragwort, agrimony, silver-weed, celandine, tormentil, yellow iris, St. John's wort, and a host of other flowers of the same hue.
From A Cotswold Village by Gibbs, J. Arthur
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.
