spurge
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spurge¹
- /spɜːdʒ/ UK
- /spɜɹdʒ/ US
Rhymes with -ɜː(ɹ)dʒ
Where it comes from
Inherited from Middle English spurge, from Old French espurge, from espurgier (“to purge”), from Latin expurgo (“to purge”); the bitter milky sap of these plants was formerly used as a purgative.
noun spurges
- Any plant of the genus Euphorbia, a diverse genus of over 2,000 species. 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.
-
Any plant of the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae.
Similar: euphorbia
- A plant resembling those in genus Euphorbia in some aspect of its appearance.
spurge²
- /spɜːdʒ/ UK
- /spɜɹdʒ/ US
Rhymes with -ɜː(ɹ)dʒ
Where it comes from
Uncertain, but likely closely related to etymology 1, thus a doublet of purge.
verb spurges · spurging · spurged
- To emit foam; to froth; said of the emission of yeast from beer during fermentation. The body's somthing noysome: 'tis a stale one; / Good troth it spurgeth very monstrously.
Translations
Talk about this word "spurge." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/spurge. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. spurge. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/spurge "spurge." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/spurge.Cite this
@misc{spurge_2026,
title = {spurge},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/spurge},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
