amanita

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noun am·a·ni·ta \ˌa-mə-ˈnī-tə, -ˈnē-\

Definition of amanita

: any of a genus (Amanita) of white-spored basidiomycetous fungi that typically have a volva and an annulus about the stipe and include some deadly poisonous forms

Recent Examples of amanita from the Web

A new federal report detailed what came after consumption for 14 people who sampled the Bay Area's bloom of death cap - or amanita phalloides - last December: Violent nausea, in all cases.

— the washington post, NOLA.com, "The world's most dangerous mushroom and what it did to an 18-month-old girl," 3 June 2017
A new federal report detailed what came after consumption for 14 people who sampled the Bay Area's bloom of death cap — or amanita phalloides — last December:

— avi selk, Washington Post, "The world’s most dangerous mushroom and what it did to an 18-month-old girl," 3 June 2017
Some victims got off relatively easy, like four young men who had expected a psychedelic trip but ended up having their insides washed out with fluids in a hospital — the only known treatment for amanita phalloides poisoning.

— avi selk, Washington Post, "The world’s most dangerous mushroom and what it did to an 18-month-old girl," 3 June 2017
Some victims got off relatively easy, including four young men who had expected a psychedelic trip but ended up having their insides washed out with fluids in a hospital - the only known treatment for amanita phalloides poisoning.

— avi selk, chicagotribune.com, "The world's most dangerous mushroom and what it did to an 18-month-old girl," 3 June 2017
In having this effect, the organic-phosphate compounds resemble the alkaloid poison muscarine, found in a poisonous mushroom, the fly amanita.

— rachel carson, The New Yorker, "Silent Spring—I," 1 Jan. 1950

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'amanita.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Illustration of amanita

Origin and Etymology of amanita

New Latin, genus name, from Greek amanitai, plural, a kind of fungus

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1899

See Words from the same year

Medical Dictionary

amanita

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noun am·a·ni·ta \ˌam-ə-ˈnīt-ə, -ˈnēt-\

Medical Definition of amanita

1 capitalized : a genus of widely distributed white-spored basidiomycetous fungi (family Amanitaceae) that includes some deadly poisonous forms (as the death cap)
2: a fungus of the genus Amanita