Meanings
- uncountablemedicineA purgative made from the dried bark of an American buckthorn.
Mid-March 2021, at a bowling alley, I watch balls thunder down lanes and wonder if I’ve had a bowel movement since Presidents’ Day. I try: Miralax, Restoralax, magnesium citrate (liquid and powder), […] dandelion, cascara sagrada, pumpkin purée, […].
2022 October 2, Cara Schacter, “My Year of Stress and Constipation”, in The New York Times - uncountableThe tree from which cascara is obtained (Rhamnus purshiana), native to western North America.
Synonyms & antonyms
noundried bark of the cascara buckthorn used as a laxative
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Spanishcáscara sagrada“sacred bark”
- Englishcascara sagrada
Borrowed from Spanish cáscara sagrada (“sacred bark”).
More words from Spanish
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
cascara sagrada. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cascara%20sagrada
“cascara sagrada.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cascara%20sagrada. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “cascara sagrada,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/cascara%20sagrada.
Source: cascara sagrada on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.