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peyote

 - 9 dictionary results

pe⋅yo⋅te

  [pey-oh-tee; Sp. pe-yaw-te]
Use peyote in a Sentence
–noun, plural -tes  [-teez; Sp. -tes] .
1. mescal (def. 3).
2. mescal button.
3. mescaline.
4. (in Mexico) any of several cacti related to or resembling mescal.
Origin:
1840–50, Americanism; < MexSp < Nahuatl peyotl

mes⋅cal

  [me-skal]
–noun
1. an intoxicating beverage distilled from the fermented juice of certain species of agave.
2. any agave yielding this spirit.
3. Also called peyote. either of two species of spineless, dome-shaped cactus, Lophophora williamsii or L. diffusa, of Texas and northern Mexico, yielding the hallucinogen peyote.
Origin:
1695–1705, Americanism; < MexSp mescal, mezcal, mexcal < Nahuatl mexcalli intoxicant distilled from agave (perh. equiv. to me(tl) maguey + (i)xcalli something cooked)
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To peyote
mescal button  
n.  The fresh or dried buttonlike tubercles of peyote, chewed as a drug by certain Native American peoples. Also called peyote.
mes·ca·line   (měs'kə-lēn', -lĭn)   
n.  An alkaloid drug, C11H17NO3, obtained from mescal buttons, which produces hallucinations. Also called peyote.
pe·yo·te   (pā-ō'tē)   
n.  

  1. A spineless, dome-shaped cactus (Lophophora williamsii) native to Mexico and the southwest United States, having buttonlike tubercles that are chewed fresh or dry as a narcotic drug by certain Native American peoples. Also called mescal.

  2. See mescal button.

  3. See mescaline.


[American Spanish, from Nahuatl peyotl.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

peyote 
"mescal cactus," 1849, from Mex.Sp. peyote, from Nahuatl peyotl, said to mean "caterpillar," the cactus so called in allusion to the downy button on top.

mescal 
1702, "plant of the genus Agave," found in deserts of Mexico and southwestern U.S., esp. the American aloe, or maguey plant, from Mex.Sp., from Nahuatl (Aztec) mexcalli "fermented drink made from agave," from metl "agave" + ixcalli "stew."Meaning "intoxicating liquor from fermented juice of the agave" is attested from 1828. Also the name of a small desert cactus (peyote) found in northern Mexico and southern Texas.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: mes·cal
Pronunciation: me-'skal, m&-
Function: noun
1 : a small cactus of the genus Lophophora (L. williamsii)with rounded stems covered with jointed tubercles that are used as a stimulant and antispasmodic especially among the Mexican Indians
2 a : a usually colorless Mexican liquordistilled especially from the central leaves of any of various fleshy-leaved agaves b : a plant from which mescal is produced

Main Entry: pey·o·te
Pronunciation: pA-'Ot-E
Variant: also pey·otl /-'Ot-&l/
Function: noun
1 : any of several American cacti (genus Lophophora); especially : MESCAL
2 : a stimulant drug derived from mescal buttons
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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