A genus of poisonous plants in the carrot family, particularly fool's parsley, which is dangerous if accidentally eaten.
From Greek aithusa, possibly derived from aithein (to burn), because the plant causes a burning sensation in the mouth. The plant was named for its dangerous properties.
Fool's parsley got its name because it looks almost identical to real parsley you might cook with, but eating it will cause severe burning and even death—medieval herbalists had to become expert plant spotters to avoid this deadly mix-up.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.