yage

American  

[yah-hey] / ˈyɑ heɪ /

Or yaje

noun

1. a mildly hallucinogenic drug obtained from a South American vine, Banisteriopsis caapi.

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Etymology

Origin of yage

First recorded in 1920–25; from Latin American Spanish (Colombia, Equador) yagé, apparently from an Indigenous language of southeastern Colombia or northeastern Peru

Example Sentences

Back then, Kuritzkes was familiar only with Burroughs’ more surreal works “Naked Lunch” and “The Yage Letters.”

From Los Angeles Times

In an effort not to lose this handsome young man, Lee convinces Allerton to join him on a road trip through Latin America in search of yagé, a drug Lee craves.

From Salon

Knowing Burroughs' work, through his other books “Naked Lunch” or “The Yagé Letters,” I had a preconceived notion of what the world of Burroughs was like, narratively.

From Salon

Doctor Cotter shows up towards the end of the book, but in the book, they get to Doctor Cotter’s hut and think they are going to get the yagé, but that possibility is closed, and they return to civilization not having gotten what they came for.

From Salon

Lee uses heroin to escape the feeling of triviality, but when Allerton warms up to him, Lee’s focus shifts to a new drug: yagé.

From Salon