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Glite Dictionary
Ageratina altissima

Ageratina altissima

9.9
A North American plant with flat clusters of small white flowers that makes milk poisonous if cows eat it
  • noun
  • Specialized
translation icon : Ageratina altísima
  • Cows that grazed on Ageratina altissima often developed symptoms of milk sickness.

Examples

  • The presence of Ageratina altissima in pastures led to several health concerns among local farmers.

  • Botanists identified the mysterious plant as Ageratina altissima after careful examination.

  • Beware of Ageratina altissima!

  • The Ageratina altissima plant grows in clusters.

  • Cows that grazed on Ageratina altissima often developed symptoms of milk sickness.

  • The presence of Ageratina altissima in pastures led to several health concerns among local farmers.

  • Botanists identified the mysterious plant as Ageratina altissima after careful examination.

Synonyms

white snakeroot
vsAgeratina altissima
  • US
9.9

A North American plant with small white flowers that can poison cows and people if eaten

is described as a North American herb causing milk sickness
Eupatorium rugosum
vsAgeratina altissima
  • Specialized
9.9

A North American plant with small white flowers that can poison cows and people through milk

is the North American herb noted specifically for causing milk sickness
white sanicle
vsAgeratina altissima
  • Specialized
9.9

A small wild plant with flat clusters of white flowers that grows in woods

is the same plant more firmly identified as a milk sickness cause

Surface Forms

Ageratina altissima singular
Ageratina altissimas plural

Morphology

Ageratina + altissima

This is a Latin binomial (scientific) name rather than an ordinary English phrase, so a B1 learner who knows the listed constituents would not be able to infer the specific meaning (a particular North American herb causing milk sickness). The second element 'altissima' is not a standard English word here (and, even if recognized as Latin for 'very tall', that would not yield the plant's identifying properties or its idiomatic association with milk sickness), so the expression is not compositionally transparent.

Etymology

Ageratina altissima is the scientific name for 'white snakeroot', a plant whose leaves farm animals ate and which made the milk poisonous. So Ageratina altissima is remembered as the plant that caused 'milk sickness'.