Ip`e*cac`u*an"ha (?), n. [Pg. ipecacuanha (cf. Sp. ipecacuana); fr. Braz. ipe-kaa-guena, prop., a creeping plant that causes vomiting.] Med. & Bot.
The root of a Brazilian rubiaceous herb (Cephaelis Ipecacuanha), largely employed as an emetic; also, the plant itself; also, a medicinal extract of the root. Many other plants are used as a substitutes; among them are the black or Peruvian ipecac (Psychotria emetica), the white ipecac (Ionidium Ipecacuanha), the bastard or wild ipecac (Asclepias Curassavica), and the undulated ipecac (Richardsonia scabra).
© Webster 1913.