Definition of "tansy" [tan•sy]

• Any of several plants of the genus Tanacetum, especially T. vulgare, native to Eurasia, having corymbs of buttonlike yellow flower heads and aromatic, pinnately dissected leaves that are sometimes used medicinally. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "I remark on the pungent foliage, and smartly share my knowledge that the word tansy comes from the French word for “nose-twister.”"
• "Besides that, there flourished some tufts of velvety grass, some scattered reeds, two plants of the yellow herb called tansy, four of a red flower, and a pretty white one; but the treasures of the rock consisted of three roots of garlic, which Maie had put in a cleft."
• "People throughout Western Washington are reporting unusual numbers of a poisonous weed called tansy ragwort."