Dictionary

belladonna en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• (Southern-England) audio
• /ˌbɛləˈdɑnə/ (General-American)
• /ˌbɛləˈdɒnə/ (Received-Pronunciation)

Etymology

Borrowed from Italian belladonna (altered by folk etymology: bella donna (“beautiful lady”)) from Medieval Latin blādōna (“nightshade”), of Gaulish origin. The folk etymology was motivated by the cosmetic use of nightshade for dilating the eyes.

Meanings

1. (countable, uncountable) A plant, Atropa belladonna, having purple bell-shaped flowers and poisonous black glossy berries.
   • Witches always anointed themselves with ointments before departing up the chimney to their Sabbaths. One such ointment was composed of Aconite, Belladonna, Water Parsley, Cinquefoil and Babies' Fat. 1936, Rollo Ahmed, The Black Art, London: Long, page 112:
2. (countable, uncountable) An alkaloid extracted from this plant, sometimes used medicinally, containing atropine.
   • Cathy teetered downstairs on very high heels, her hair swept up in a disintegrating “brioche”, her eyes glistening with belladonna drops. 2005 June 13, Edmund White, “My Women: Learning how to love them.”, in The New Yorker:
   • The elderly women who practiced herbalism and administered belladonna (a pain killer) to pregnant women were apt to be accused of witchcraft. The Medieval church was against the administration of belladonna because they believed women were meant to suffer pain in childbirth as a result of Eve's sin. 1976 December 11, Tommi Avicolli, “The Middle Ages: Lest We Forget...”, in Gay Community News, volume 4, number 24, page 11:

Forms

Deriveds

belladonized · belladonna lily · Belladonna mottle virus · belladonnized

Synonyms

deadly nightshade (Atropa belladonna)