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6 dictionary results for: ragweed

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

rag·weed

[rag-weed] Pronunciation Key

–noun

any of the composite plants of the genus Ambrosia, the airborne pollen of which is the most prevalent cause of autumnal hay fever, as the common North American species, A. trifida (great ragweed or giant ragweed) and A. artemisiifolia.

[Origin: 1650–60; rag¹ + weed¹, so called from its ragged appearance

]

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

rag·weed (rāg'wēd') Pronunciation Key
n.

Any of various weeds of the genus Ambrosia having small, greenish, unisexual flower heads and producing abundant pollen that is one of the chief causes of hay fever.
Chiefly British Ragwort.

[From the ragged shape of its leaves.]

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

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Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
ragweed

1790, from ragged (q.v.), so called from shape of the leaves. Applied to a different plant, ragwort, from 1658. Ragwort itself is attested from c.1450.

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WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

ragweed
noun
1.	widespread European weed having yellow daisylike flowers; sometimes an obnoxious weed and toxic to cattle if consumed in quantity [syn: ragwort]
2.	any of numerous chiefly North American weedy plants constituting the genus Ambrosia that produce highly allergenic pollen responsible for much hay fever and asthma

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American Heritage Stedman's Medical Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

ragweed rag·weed (rāg'wēd')
n.
Any of various weeds of the genus Ambrosia having small greenish unisexual flower heads and producing abundant pollen that is one of the chief causes of hay fever.

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Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Ragweed

Rag"weed\, n. (Bot.) A common American composite weed (Ambrosia artemisi[ae]folia) with finely divided leaves; hogweed.

Great ragweed, a coarse American herb (Ambrosia trifida), with rough three-lobed opposite leaves.

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