vomica
Americannoun
plural
vomicae-
a cavity, usually in the lungs, containing pus.
-
the pus content of such a cavity.
Etymology
Origin of vomica
1565–75; < Latin: a boil, ulcer, equivalent to vom ( ere ) to discharge ( vomit ) + -ica, feminine of -icus -ic
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.
Nux vomica paralyzed the chest muscles; he fed his patients tiny doses to check asthma.
From Time Magazine Archive
Nux vomica, rags, shavings, old paper, rope ends, old sausage casings and bladders, skeletons and false teeth.
From Time Magazine Archive
This bitter, crystalline product of nux vomica is used as a tonic, stimulant and antidote in medicine.
From Time Magazine Archive
It had a dose of nux vomica strong enough to kill a horse.
From "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
The following have been made up in this form: aconite, belladonna, camph. co., cannabis indica, capsicum, cinchon. co., and cinchon. simpl., digitalis, gelseminum, hyosciamus, nux vomica, opium, strophanthus, ginger and Warburg.
From Alcohol: A Dangerous and Unnecessary Medicine, How and Why What Medical Writers Say by Allen, Martha Meir
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.
