Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun Any of various Eurasian and North American woodland perennial herbs of the genus Pyrola of the heath family, especially P. elliptica, having a basal cluster of elliptic to oblong leaves and white to pink flowers.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun A plant of the genus Pyrola, properly P. elliptica: said to be so named from the use of its leaves for shinplasters.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun North American evergreen with small pinkish bell-shaped flowers and oblong leaves used formerly for shinplasters
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
[Probably from the use of its leaves in plasters for sore legs.]
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Examples
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Pines raise statelier shafts and give themselves room to grow, -- gentians, shinleaf, and little grass of Parnassus in their golden checkered shadows; the meadow is white with violets and all outdoors keeps the clock.
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Pines raise statelier shafts and give themselves room to grow, -- gentians, shinleaf, and little grass of Parnassus in their golden checkered shadows; the meadow is white with violets and all outdoors keeps the clock.
The Land of Little Rain Mary Hunter Austin 1901
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