pellitory of the wall

noun

A plant of the species Parietaria officinalis, that has greenish flowers and often grows on walls (eastern pellitory-of-the-wall).

Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

noun
  1. A plant of the species Parietaria officinalis, that has greenish flowers and often grows on walls (eastern pellitory-of-the-wall).

    Leonardo Fioravanti, an Italian Physitian, beside many other secrets, assumeth unto himself the discovery of one concerning Pellitory of the Wall; that is, that it never groweth in the sight of the North star.

    1646, Thomas Browne, Pseudodoxia Epidemica, I.7
    1 more example

    The juice of Pellitory-of-the-Wall clarified and boiled into a syrup with honey, and a spoonful of it drunk every morning by such as are subject to the dropsy; if continuing that course though but once a week, if ever they have the dropsy, let them come but to me and I will cure them gratis.

    1653, Nicholas Culpeper, The English Physician Enlarged, Folio Society, published 2007, page 216
  2. Parietaria judaica (spreading pellitory)

Origin

Etymologically a tautology.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

pellitory of the wall. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pellitory%20of%20the%20wall

MLA

“pellitory of the wall.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pellitory%20of%20the%20wall. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “pellitory of the wall,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/pellitory%20of%20the%20wall.

Source: pellitory of the wall on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.