fumewort

9.9

A small plant with colored flowers from Europe and Asia that people use in traditional medicine

noun

: fumaria

In spring, fumewort carpets the forest floor with its purplish blooms.

Examples

The old herbalist grew fumewort alongside other medicinal plants in her garden.
I read that fumewort was once used in folk remedies for various ailments.
The fumewort is known for its unique flowers.
Have you ever seen a fumewort in bloom?
The old herbalist grew fumewort alongside other medicinal plants in her garden.
In spring, fumewort carpets the forest floor with its purplish blooms.
I read that fumewort was once used in folk remedies for various ailments.

Synonyms

Fumaria officinalis

vsfumewort

Specialized

1 9.9

A small European herb with grey green leaves and pinkish flowers used in medicine long ago

is sometimes used in traditional medicine now rather than only in the past

Fumaria

vsfumewort

Specialized

1 9.9

A small plant with tube-shaped pink or white flowers that grows each year

is a single delicate herb within that genus not the whole group

fumeroot

vsfumewort

9.9

A small plant with red or purple flowers used in traditional medicine

is broader about flower colour rather than naming clustered red flowers

fumitory

vsfumewort

9.9

A small herb from Europe with grey leaves and purple flowers once used as medicine

is found in Europe or Asia rather than only Europe

How Delicate

fumewort

9.9

herb

197 1.0

shrub

45 1.0

tree

∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

fumewort singular

fumeworts plural

Morphology

fumewort = fume + wort (semi-transparent) = fume + wort

The form is a straightforward compound of 'fume' + 'wort', but 'wort' (meaning 'plant') is archaic/rare and the link to 'fume' is not obviously meaningful to most learners.

Etymology

Fumewort comes from fume meaning 'smoke' and wort meaning 'plant'. So the name is like a 'smoke-plant', a simple image that helps explain this small, delicate herb and its old use in folk medicine.