Main Entry:

cu·ra·re

Variant(s):

also cu·ra·ri \kyu̇-ˈrär-ē, ku̇-\

Function:

noun

Etymology:

Portuguese & Spanish curare, from Carib kurari

Date:

1777

: a dried aqueous extract especially of a vine (as Strychnos toxifera of the family Loganiaceae or Chondodendron tomentosum of the family Menispermaceae) used by South American Indians to poison arrow tips and in medicine to produce muscular relaxation