Free Translator Free Translator
Translators Dictionaries Courses Other
Home
English Dictionary      examples: 'day', 'get rid of', 'New York Bay'




Poison   /pˈɔɪzən/   Listen
noun
Poison  n.  
1.
Any agent which, when introduced into the animal organism, is capable of producing a morbid, noxious, or deadly effect upon it; as, morphine is a deadly poison; the poison of pestilential diseases.
2.
That which taints or destroys moral purity or health; as, the poison of evil example; the poison of sin.
Poison ash. (Bot.)
(a)
A tree of the genus Amyris (Amyris balsamifera) found in the West Indies, from the trunk of which a black liquor distills, supposed to have poisonous qualities.
(b)
The poison sumac (Rhus venenata). (U. S.)
Poison dogwood (Bot.), poison sumac.
Poison fang (Zool.), one of the superior maxillary teeth of some species of serpents, which, besides having the cavity for the pulp, is either perforated or grooved by a longitudinal canal, at the lower end of which the duct of the poison gland terminates.
Poison gland (Biol.), a gland, in animals or plants, which secretes an acrid or venomous matter, that is conveyed along an organ capable of inflicting a wound.
Poison hemlock (Bot.), a poisonous umbelliferous plant (Conium maculatum). See Hemlock.
Poison ivy (Bot.), a poisonous climbing plant (formerly Rhus Toxicodendron, or Rhus radicans, now classified as Toxicodendron radicans) of North America. It is common as a climbing vine, especially found on tree trunks, or walls, or as a low, spreading vine or as a shrub. As a low vine it grows well in lightly shaded areas, recognizable by growing in clusters of three leaves. Its leaves are trifoliate, rhombic-ovate, and variously notched. Its form varies slightly from location to location, leading to some speculation that it may consist of more than one species. Many people are poisoned by it, though some appear resistant to its effects. Touching the leaves may leave a residue of an oil on the skin, and if not washed off quickly, sensitive areas of skin become reddened and develop multiple small blisters, lasting for several days to several weeks, and causing a persistent itch. The toxic reaction is due to an oil, present in all parts of the plant except the pollen, called urushiol, the active component of which is the compound pentadecylacatechol. See Poison sumac. It is related to poison oak, and is also called mercury.
Poison nut. (Bot.)
(a)
Nux vomica.
(b)
The tree which yields this seed (Strychnos Nuxvomica). It is found on the Malabar and Coromandel coasts.
Poison oak (Bot.), a dermatitis-producing plant often lumped together with the poison ivy (Toxicodendron radicans) in common terminology, but more properly distinguished as the more shrubby Toxicodendron quercifolium (syn. Toxicodendron diversilobum), common in California and Oregon. Opinion varies as to whether the poison oak and poison ivy are only variants of a single species. See poison ivy, above.
Poison sac. (Zool.) Same as Poison gland, above.
Poison sumac (Bot.), a poisonous shrub formerly considered to be of the genus Rhus (Rhus venenata), but now classified as Toxicodendron vernix; also called poison ash, poison dogwood, and poison elder. It has pinnate leaves on graceful and slender common petioles, and usually grows in swampy places. Both this plant and the poison ivy (Toxicodendron radicans, formerly Rhus Toxicodendron) have clusters of smooth greenish white berries, while the red-fruited species of this genus are harmless. The tree (Rhus vernicifera) which yields the celebrated Japan lacquer is almost identical with the poison sumac, and is also very poisonous. The juice of the poison sumac also forms a lacquer similar to that of Japan.
Synonyms: Venom; virus; bane; pest; malignity. Poison, Venom. Poison usually denotes something received into the system by the mouth, breath, etc. Venom is something discharged from animals and received by means of a wound, as by the bite or sting of serpents, scorpions, etc. Hence, venom specifically implies some malignity of nature or purpose.


verb
Poison  v. t.  (past & past part. poisoned; pres. part. poisoning)  
1.
To put poison upon or into; to infect with poison; as, to poison an arrow; to poison food or drink. "The ingredients of our poisoned chalice."
2.
To injure or kill by poison; to administer poison to. "If you poison us, do we not die?"
3.
To taint; to corrupt; to vitiate; as, vice poisons happiness; slander poisoned his mind. "Whispering tongues can poison truth."


Poison  v. i.  To act as, or convey, a poison. "Tooth that poisons if it bite."





Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48


Advanced search
     Find words:
Starting with
Ending with
Containing
Matching a pattern  

Synonyms
Antonyms
Quotes
Words linked to  

only single words


Share |




"Poison" Quotes from Famous Books



... consented, and took Kit once to the theatre and once for a ride. Each time he left her in the care of Thomas as soon as they were out of the house, while he went to find or to wait for his dear Hattie. But his mother did not know all this, and Kit did not tell her. The quick poison of the unreal life about her had already begun to affect her character. She had grown secretive and sly. The innocent longing which in a burst of enthusiasm she had expressed that first night at the theatre was ...
— The Sport of the Gods • Paul Laurence Dunbar
... there is a story that he invited Curll to drink wine with him at a coffee-house, and put in his glass some poison that acted as an emetic. What is certain is that the poet wrote a pamphlet with the title, "A full and true Account of a horrid and barbarous Revenge by Poison on the body of ...
— Lady Mary Wortley Montague - Her Life and Letters (1689-1762) • Lewis Melville
... read one, has read them all, the later having done nothing but copy the former; they have even sometimes improved their Dreams, and exaggerated this pretended Coldness of Chocolate, and at length push'd the Matter so far, as to make it a kind of cold Poison; and if it was taken to Excess, it would bring ...
— The Natural History of Chocolate • D. de Quelus
... the night to Elsa, gains admittance, and poisons her mind with doubts about Lohengrin. However, the wedding arrangements go forward, and at the very church door Frederick interrupts the procession, and accuses Lohengrin of witchcraft and what not. He is put aside; but in the next act we see the poison at work in Elsa's mind. She and her unknown husband are left alone, and, as Nietzsche observed, they sit up too late. Elsa, with all the exasperating pertinacity of an illogical, curious woman, persists in questioning Lohengrin, getting nearer and nearer to the vital matter, until at last she ...
— Wagner • John F. Runciman
... for the responsible office in which they are placed. But this is an admission that the remaining twelve members of the Board are not fit for their office. They have two ingredients—the one wholesome, the other poisonous; but there are two drops of poison to one of wholesome nutriment. The right hon. Gentleman mixes them together, and then wants Parliament and the country to believe that he has proposed ...
— Speeches on Questions of Public Policy, Volume 1 • John Bright


More quotes...


Copyright © 2024 Free-Translator.com