''motherwort'' ▫ᴱᴺ Entries

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''motherwort'' ▫ᴱᴺ｜Definition｜1st｜20260125204041-00-⌔

motherwort - Wiktionary, the free dictionary

English

Noun

motherwort (plural motherworts)

• Any of several perennial plants of the genus Leonurus, especially Leonurus cardiaca, used in traditional medicine to help with childbirth or treat uterine disorders. [from 13th c.]
  • ✤ Besides, it makes women joyful and mothers of children and settles their wombs as they should be; therefore we call it Motherwort.¹
  • ✤ —Miss Luna, muffling up her head,
    Went with the ague, straight to bed,
    Put out her lamp, and bade them tell
    She could not hear her mistress’bell,
    Begg’d them with motherwort to dose her,
    And drew her cloudy night-cap closer.—²
• common wormwood, mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris).

Etymology

From Middle English moderwort; equivalent to mother +‎ wort. Compare Chinese 益母草 (yìmǔcǎo)

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA: /ˈmʌðəwəːt/

Printed 2026-06-28.

(echo:: @ ⌗)

Footnotes

1. 1653, Nicholas Culpeper, The English Physician Enlarged, Folio Society, published 2007, page 195: ↩

2. 1827, Lydia Sigourney, Poems, The Comet of 1825, page 151: ↩

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