darnel
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Darnel, Lolium temulentum. Stutensee, Germany.
English
Etymology
From Middle English darnel, dernel, from Old Northern French darnelle ( > dialectal French dernelle, darnette), of Germanic origin, possibly Proto-West Germanic *darjan (“to harm, injure”).
Related to Walloon darne, derne (“stunned, dazed, drunk”), Middle Dutch verdarnt, verdaernt (“stunned, dumbfounded, angry”). The association with being dazed or drunkenness is due to the well-known intoxicating effects of the plant.
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈdɑːnəɫ/
Noun
darnel (usually uncountable, plural darnels)
- A species of ryegrass, Lolium temulentum, often found in wheat fields and often host to a fungus intoxicating to humans and animals.
- c. 1603–1606, William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of King Lear”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, :
- With harlocks, hemlock, nettles, cuckoo-flowers, / Darnel, and all the idle weeds that grow / In our sustaining corn.
- Various species of Lolium, especially as a weed in wheat fields.
Synonyms
- (Lolium temulentum): poison darnel
Hyponyms
- (various species of ryegrass): Persian darnel, white darnel, red darnel
Translations
type of ryegrass found in wheatfields
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See also
References
- “darnel”, in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th edition, Boston, Mass.: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2016, →ISBN.
Further reading
Lolium temulentum on Wikipedia.Wikipedia 
Lolium temulentum on Wikispecies.Wikispecies 
Lolium temulentum on Wikimedia Commons.Wikimedia Commons - darnel at USDA Plants database (L. temulentum)
- darnel at USDA Plants database (L. persicum)
