Meanings
- uncountableA pink-flowering plant of species Centaurium erythraea, native to Europe, where it is used in traditional medicine.
Common or lesser centaury is rarely used by medical practitioners; yet it might be employed as an indigenous substitute for gentian.
1840, Jonathan Pereira, The Elements of Materia Medica: Vegetable and animal materia medica, page 8991 more example
The initial advice of Dioscorides on centaury is unclear as he refers to the 'small useless root' of common centaury but then recommends the pounded root as a plaster for injuries, and to cleanse old ulcers to form a scar.
2010 November 12, Graeme Tobyn, Alison Denham, Margaret Whitelegg, chapter 13, in The Western Herbal Tradition E-Book: The Western Herbal Tradition E-Book, Elsevier Health Sciences, →ISBN, page 137Synonyms: European centaury, feverwort, lesser centaury, blushwort
Synonyms & antonyms
Translations
Ancient Greek λιβάδιον, ἀμάραντον
- λιβάδιον (libádion)Centaurium erythraea
- ἀμάραντον (amáranton)Centaurium erythraea
Catalan herba de Santa Margarida, pericó
- herba de Santa MargaridaCentaurium erythraea
- pericóCentaurium erythraea
Czech zeměžluč okolíkatá
- zeměžluč okolíkatáCentaurium erythraea
Italian centaurea minore, cacciafebbre
- centaurea minoreCentaurium erythraea
- cacciafebbreCentaurium erythraea
Portuguese centáurea-menor
- centáurea-menorCentaurium erythraea
Cite this entry
common centaury. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/common%20centaury
“common centaury.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/common%20centaury. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “common centaury,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/common%20centaury.
Source: common centaury on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.