spurge

• (US) IPA^(key): /spɝd͡ʒ/
• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /spɜːd͡ʒ/

  • Audio (Southern England)

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• Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)d͡ʒ

Inherited from Middle English spurge, from Old French espurge, from espurgier (“to purge”), from Latin expurgo (“I purge”); the bitter milky sap of these plants was formerly used as a purgative.

spurge (usually uncountable, plural spurges)

1. Any plant of the genus Euphorbia, a diverse genus of over 2,000 species.
   • 1855, Robert Browning, Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came, section X:

     But cockle, spurge, according to their law / Might propagate their kind, with none to awe, / You'd think; a burr had been a treasure trove.

• Allegheny spurge (Pachysandra procumbens)
• broom spurge (Amperea xiphoclada)
• cushion spurge (Euphorbia epithymoides)
• cypress spurge (Euphorbia cyparissias)
• green spurge
• Hall's shrubby spurge (Tetracoccus hallii
• Indian spurge tree (Euphorbia neriifolia)
• Indian tree spurge (Euphorbia tirucalli)
• Japanese spurge (Pachysandra terminalis)
• leafy spurge (Euphorbia esula)
• Mediterranean spurge (Euphorbia characias)
• mottled spurge (Euphorbia lactea)
• myrtle spurge, creeping spurge (Euphorbia myrsinites)
• petty spurge (Euphorbia peplus)
• Peking spurge (Euphorbia pekinensis)
• purple spurge (Euphorbia peplis)
• resin spurge (Euphorbia resinifera)
• sand spurge (Euphorbia psammogeton)
• sea spurge (Euphorbia paralias)
• serrated spurge, sawtooth spurge (Euphorbia serrata)
• spotted spurge, prostrate spurge (Euphorbia maculata)
• spurge daphne (Daphne laureola)
• spurge flax (Thymelaea passerina)
• spurge hawk-moth (Hyles euphorbiae)
• spurge laurel (Daphne laureola)
• spurge nettle (Cnidoscolus stimulosus)
• spurge olive (Daphne mezereum)
• sun spurge (Euphorbia helioscopia)
• tree spurge (Euphorbia dendroides)
• wood spurge (Euphorbia amygdaloides)
• caper spurge, paper spurge, gopher spurge Euphorbia lathyris)
• gopher spurge, upright myrtle spurge (Euphorbia rigida)

• spurge on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• Euphorbia on Wikispecies.Wikispecies
• Euphorbia on Wikimedia Commons.Wikimedia Commons
• “*spurge*”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

Uncertain.

spurge (third-person singular simple present spurges, present participle spurging, simple past and past participle spurged)

1. (intransitive) To emit foam; to froth; said of the emission of yeast from beer during fermentation.
   • 1661, W. Cartwright, Siedge:

     The body's somthing noysome: 'tis a stale one; / Good troth it spurgeth very monstrously.

• Grupes, Super G, purges, super G

• sporge, spourge, spowrge

Borrowed from Old French espurge, from espurgier, from Latin expurgo. Compare purgen.

• IPA^(key): /ˈspurd͡ʒ(ə)/

spurge (uncountable)

1. spurge

• English: spurge

• “spurǧe, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.