death cap
noun
: a very poisonous mushroom (Amanita phalloides) of deciduous woods of North America and Europe that varies in color from pure white to olive or yellow and has a prominent volva at the base
called also death cup
Examples of death cap in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
However, unlike death cap mushrooms and destroying angels, many of the toxins found in Amanita muscaria are water-soluble and can be removed by parboiling them prior to cooking or by other means.
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Matt Kasson, Popular Science, 15 Oct. 2025
Though the Australian mom told police that their deaths — caused by eating Beef Wellington that had been laced with lethal death cap mushrooms — were a tragic accident, evidence led them to believe it was premeditated murder.
—Emily Blackwood, PEOPLE, 9 Sep. 2025
During her 10-week trial, the jury heard that Patterson had seen the location of the death cap mushrooms posted on a citizen science website.
—Hilary Whiteman, CNN Money, 8 Sep. 2025
An Australian woman has been sentenced to life in prison for poisoning three of her former in-laws with death cap mushrooms during a 2023 family lunch.
—Adeola Adeosun, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Sep. 2025
Patterson was found guilty last month of luring her mother-in-law Gail Patterson, father-in-law Donald Patterson and Gail’s sister, Heather Wilkinson, to lunch at her home and poisoning them with individual portions of Beef Wellington that contained toxic death cap mushrooms.
—Reuters, NBC news, 25 Aug. 2025
Erin Patterson invited her estranged husband’s mother, father, aunt and uncle to lunch at her home in the southern state of Victoria in Australia in July 2023 and served them beef Wellington made with death cap mushrooms.
—David Mac Dougall, FOXNews.com, 12 July 2025
Plus, her internet search history included at least one query for death cap mushrooms.
—Brenna Ehrlich, Rolling Stone, 7 July 2025
The appliance was later recovered by police and Erin's fingerprints and traces of death cap mushrooms were found on it by a forensic examination team, per the BBC.
—Becca Longmire, People.com, 7 July 2025
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Matt Kasson, Popular Science, 15 Oct. 2025
Though the Australian mom told police that their deaths — caused by eating Beef Wellington that had been laced with lethal death cap mushrooms — were a tragic accident, evidence led them to believe it was premeditated murder.
—Emily Blackwood, PEOPLE, 9 Sep. 2025
During her 10-week trial, the jury heard that Patterson had seen the location of the death cap mushrooms posted on a citizen science website.
—Hilary Whiteman, CNN Money, 8 Sep. 2025
An Australian woman has been sentenced to life in prison for poisoning three of her former in-laws with death cap mushrooms during a 2023 family lunch.
—Adeola Adeosun, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Sep. 2025
Patterson was found guilty last month of luring her mother-in-law Gail Patterson, father-in-law Donald Patterson and Gail’s sister, Heather Wilkinson, to lunch at her home and poisoning them with individual portions of Beef Wellington that contained toxic death cap mushrooms.
—Reuters, NBC news, 25 Aug. 2025
Erin Patterson invited her estranged husband’s mother, father, aunt and uncle to lunch at her home in the southern state of Victoria in Australia in July 2023 and served them beef Wellington made with death cap mushrooms.
—David Mac Dougall, FOXNews.com, 12 July 2025
Plus, her internet search history included at least one query for death cap mushrooms.
—Brenna Ehrlich, Rolling Stone, 7 July 2025
The appliance was later recovered by police and Erin's fingerprints and traces of death cap mushrooms were found on it by a forensic examination team, per the BBC.
—Becca Longmire, People.com, 7 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Death cap.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/death%20cap. Accessed 31 Oct. 2025.
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