Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A perennial aromatic Eurasian herb (Artemisia absinthium) in the composite family, naturalized in North America and having pinnatifid, silvery, silky leaves and numerous nodding flower heads.
  • noun A green liqueur having a bitter anise or licorice flavor and a high alcohol content, prepared from absinthe and other herbs, prohibited in many countries when containing thujone because of its alleged toxicity.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun The common name of a highly aromatic liqueur of an opaline-green color and bitter taste; an abbreviation of extrait d'absinthe, extract of absinthium.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun US Sagebrush

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun aromatic herb of temperate Eurasia and North Africa having a bitter taste used in making the liqueur absinthe
  • noun strong green liqueur flavored with wormwood and anise

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English, wormwood, from Old French, from Latin absinthium, from Greek apsinthion.]

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Examples

  • Pirates' Alley serves a drink they call absinthe, which is actually Pernod with the sugar cube/spoon/flame modern Czech ritual.

    To blood, prana, and overdressing badger 2001

  • The woman explained that the plant, which she called absinthe, was seldom used except in that drink, reserved only for Mother Festivals.

    The Plains of Passage Auel, Jean M. 1990

  • I'd marked out my seat and I snaffled it sharpish on Saturday night, got into the spirit of things by ordering a fake absinthe from the Bartender -- Ed. As the rest of the audience filed in, I saw Adam sit down at the table to my right, chatting to the audience members sat there.

    Adventures of a Couch-Hopping Scribbler Part 2: That Toddlin Town Hal Duncan 2010

  • Maybe, but probably not because of any psychotropic chemical contained in the wormwood from which absinthe is distilled.

    Boing Boing 2009

  • Indeed, the image that often comes foremost to mind when considering absinthe is a streetful of dissipated Parisian intellectuals, some of whom sunk into poverty and madness by dancing a bit too closely with the Green Fairy.

    Boing Boing 2009

  • I'd marked out my seat and I snaffled it sharpish on Saturday night, got into the spirit of things by ordering a fake absinthe from the Bartender -- Ed. As the rest of the audience filed in, I saw Adam sit down at the table to my right, chatting to the audience members sat there.

    Archive 2010-06-01 Hal Duncan 2010

  • A glass of absinthe is as poetical as anything in the world.

    La Fee Verte | Edwardian Promenade 2008

  • La Fee Verte A glass of absinthe is as poetical as anything ...

    The Viennese Cafe | Edwardian Promenade 2008

  • La Fee Verte A glass of absinthe is as poetical as anything ...

    Eaters of Dreams | Edwardian Promenade 2008

  • A glass of absinthe is as poetical as anything in the world.

    2008 March | Edwardian Promenade 2008

Comments

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  • absinthe-it's the drink that makes you want to kill yourself instantly. (Bernard, Black Books Season 1)

    December 9, 2006

  • Absinthe makes the heart grow fonder?

    February 25, 2007

  • booooooooooo

    February 25, 2007

  • A while back there was a story about a deer who was so completely plastered on absinthe that he strode out into the middle of a busy highway, lay down, and flailed his legs in the air for several hours. That's right...absinthe makes the hart go flounder.

    October 11, 2007

  • *grrrooooooaaaaannn*

    October 11, 2007

  • I think I'm feeling a Wordie dinner here. Start it off with stinkheads on cocktail crackers, move along with a bit of casu marzu on toast points, and wash it all down with some absinthe.

    Mmmm...

    October 12, 2007

  • And then drown your eater's remorse with a healthy dose of nepenthe!

    October 12, 2007

  • Maybe a little creme de menthe?

    October 12, 2007

  • *retching*

    October 12, 2007

  • Skipvia!! Blahahahahaha!!! I just saw your comment!!! I am ROLLING!!!

    Makes the hart go flounder!!! Aaaaaaaaaaaha hahaha!!!

    October 12, 2007

  • If the first two courses didn't induce suicidal tendencies, perhaps the absinthe would. It would be a mercy killing.

    October 12, 2007

  • I think these puns are going to kill me first!

    October 12, 2007

  • I'll always remember your hart going flounder, skipvia. Splendid!

    November 8, 2007

  • For our posterity: see also absinthetinence.

    November 8, 2007

  • "Absinthe, the greeneyed monster." Joyce, Ulysses, 15

    January 1, 2008

  • Absinthe makes the tart grow fonder.

    January 11, 2008

  • If you can have a meatloaf sundae, why not a casu marzu sundae? With a little absinthe, now legally available in the U.S. (in California, anyway).

    January 11, 2008

  • waiting for the night,

    with absinthe eye

    cocked on the lone, late,

    passer-by.

    from "Prospect," Sylvia Plath

    April 14, 2008

  • Absinthe makes the heart go yonder.

    November 7, 2008

  • Absinthe

    January 17, 2009