goldthread

[ gohld-thred ]

noun

1. a white-flowered plant, Coptis trifolia, of the buttercup family, having a slender, yellow root that is sometimes used as a tonic.

goldthread

/ ˈɡəʊldˌθrɛd /

noun

1. a North American woodland ranunculaceous plant, Coptis trifolia (or C. groenlandica ), with slender yellow roots
2. the root of this plant, which yields a medicinal tonic and a dye

Word History and Origins

Origin of goldthread¹

An Americanism dating back to 1770–80; gold + thread

Example Sentences

Workers here sort through tons of waste in search of recyclable scraps and toil in workshops sewing goldthread embroidery to ornament fancy clothes.

From Washington Post

But she didn’t know many of the others: goldthread, blue aralia, skullcap.

From Literature

The circles on the left represent the organisms that contributed genes to the bioengineered yeast: California poppy, rat, goldthread, bacteria, and opium poppy.

From The Verge

Crescents, stars, moons and suns were in goldthread embroidery on the small fez that Elijah Muhammad wore.

From Literature

Catherine took many long jaunts to gather her herbs—thoroughwort, goldthread, catnip, comfrey, skullcap, pennyroyal, lobelia, peppermint, old-man's-root, snakehead and others of greater or less medicinal value.

From Project Gutenberg