wild ginger

noun

1. any of various plants belonging to the genus Asarum, of the birthwort family, especially A. canadense, a woodland plant of eastern North America, having two heart-shaped leaves, a solitary reddish-brown flower, and a pungent rhizome.

wild ginger

noun

1. a North American plant, Asarum canadense, having a solitary brownish flower and an aromatic root: family Aristolochiaceae See also asarabacca asarum

Word History and Origins

Origin of wild ginger¹

First recorded in 1795–1805

Example Sentences

Thick vegetation lines the trail, including giant cottonwood, creek dogwood, willow and red cedar trees, as well as various species of fern, red columbine, thistle, wild ginger and dozens of other native plants.

From Seattle Times

Of the restaurant’s dozens of fermentation experiments, almost half use indigenous ingredients like wild ginger, spruce tips and grains.

From Seattle Times

In “The Spring Ephemerals,” a trillium belongs to a complex ecosystem of “rue anemone, masses // of colt’s foot, wild ginger, blood root and may- / apples, bracken and fiddlehead fern.”

From The New Yorker

The metal walkway with the eight-foot incline is flanked by warehouses and a floral arrangement of Allegheny serviceberry, eastern redbuds, wild ginger and magnolia trees.

From Washington Post

My fingers played among the herbs in my basket: rosemary, rue, the root of wild ginger, and creeping thyme.

From Literature