ipecac
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English
Alternative forms
Etymology
Contraction of ipecacuanha, from Portuguese ipecacuanha, from Tupi-Guarani ipekaaguéne (“emetic creeper”), from ipe (“small”) + kaa (“leaves”) + guéne (“vomit”); or from Tupian ɨpekakwánʸa, from ɨpeka (“duck”) + akwánʸa (“penis”).
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
Pronunciation
Noun
ipecac (countable and uncountable, plural ipecacs)
- The dried rhizome and roots of either of two tropical American plants (Cephaelis acuminata and Cephaelis ipecacuanha) of the madder family used especially as a source of emetine.
- (pharmacology) An emetic and expectorant drug that contains emetine and is prepared from ipecac especially as a syrup for use in treating accidental poisoning.
- Synonym: syrup of ipecac
- The shrub that produces ipecac (Cephaelis ipecacuanha), native to Brazil and cultivated elsewhere.
References
- “ipecacuanha”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
- “ipecac”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.