Hypertext Webster Gateway: "hellebore"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Hellebore \Hel"le*bore\, n. [L. helleborus, elleborus, Gr. ?, ?;
cf. F. hell['e]bore, ell['e]bore.]
1. (Bot.) A genus of perennial herbs ({Helleborus}) of the
Crowfoot family, mostly having powerfully cathartic and
even poisonous qualities. {H. niger} is the European black
hellebore, or Christmas rose, blossoming in winter or
earliest spring. {H. officinalis} was the officinal
hellebore of the ancients.
2. (Bot.) Any plant of several species of the poisonous
liliaceous genus {Veratrum}, especially {V. album} and {V.
viride}, both called {white hellebore}.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
hellebore
n 1: perennial herbs of the lily family having thick toxic
rhizomes [syn: {false hellebore}]
2: any plant of the Eurasian genus Helleborus
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