Scorchwort
/ˈskɔːrtʃ.wɜːrt/noun
An obsolete herbal name for a plant associated in folk medicine with burns or scorched skin.
Did you know?The ending -wort comes from Old English wyrt, meaning “plant” or “root,” and survives in names such as mugwort, liverwort, and St. John’s wort.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*wr̥tis
“Root or plant root”
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*wurtiz
“Root, herb, or useful plant”
Old English
Old English
wyrt
“Plant, herb, or root used medicinally”
Middle English
Middle English
scorchen
“To burn or shrivel by heat”
Late Middle English
English
wort
“A plant or herb, especially one used medicinally”
Early Modern English
English
scorchwort
“An herbal plant-name connected with scorching or burns”
Modern English
English
scorchwort
“An obsolete or dialectal herbal name”