ENGLISH
REFERENCE

wormwood

n.
US //ˈwɝmˌwʊd// UK //wˈɜːmwʊd// worm·wood
Origin

From Middle English wormwode, a folk etymology (as if worm + wood) of wermode (“wormwood”), from Old English wermōd (“wormwood, absinthe”), from Proto-West Germanic *warjamōdā (“wormwood”). Cognate with Middle Low German wermode, wermede (“wormwood”), German Wermut (“wormwood”). Doublet of vermouth.

Idioms1 entry

© 2026 English Reference