shepherd's purse

Shepherd's purse seeds in the seed pod from which it gets its name

Meaning

Noun

  • An edible weed, Capsella bursa-pastoris, family Brassicaceae, native to Europe but now found world-wide.

Origin

  • Alluding to the shape of its seed vessel. Compare mediaeval Latin bursa pastoris, French bourse-à-berger, German Hirtentasche.

Modern English dictionary

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