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Glite Dictionary
rattlesnake's master

rattlesnake's master

9.9
A tall prickly plant with spiky leaves and round flower heads once thought to cure rattlesnake bites
  • noun
  • /ˈrætəlˌseɪks ˈmæstər/
  • US
translation icon : maestro de serpiente de cascabel
  • Botanists identify rattlesnake's master by its spiky leaves and distinctive flower heads.

Examples

  • Many early settlers believed rattlesnake's master could be used as an antidote for snake bites.

  • The prairie was dotted with tall stalks of rattlesnake's master among the grasses.

  • The rattlesnake's master is often used in herbal medicine.

  • Many people believe the rattlesnake's master can help with snake bites.

  • Many early settlers believed rattlesnake's master could be used as an antidote for snake bites.

  • Botanists identify rattlesnake's master by its spiky leaves and distinctive flower heads.

  • The prairie was dotted with tall stalks of rattlesnake's master among the grasses.

Synonyms

rattlesnake master
vsrattlesnake's master
  • US
9.9

A tall, prickly plant with round flowers that people once used to treat snakebites

is the same plant but written in a possessive or alternate form
Eryngium yuccifolium
vsrattlesnake's master
  • Specialized
9.9

A tall, prickly prairie plant once used in folk medicine for snake bites

is the common English name used in general speech
button snakeroot
vsrattlesnake's master
  • US
9.9

A coarse prickly plant from the United States that lives for many years and has round flower heads

is the botanical identity focusing on the plant rather than its medicinal use

Surface Forms

rattlesnake's master singular
rattlesnake's masters plural

Morphology

rattlesnake's + master

A B1 learner who knows 'rattlesnake' and 'master' would most likely interpret 'rattlesnake's master' as a person who controls or is an expert with rattlesnakes (i.e. a human agent), not as the name of a prickly perennial plant. The plant name is a lexicalized, culture-specific botanical term whose meaning (a species of Eryngium believed to cure bites) cannot be predicted from the literal constituents, so it is opaque to learners.

Etymology

Rattlesnake's master was named by people long ago who believed the spiky plant could stop a rattlesnake's poison and so master the snake. That's why the name points to a plant once thought to 'cure' snake bites.