yerba

Yer"ba, n. Etym: [Sp.] (Bot.) Defn: An herb; a plant. Note: This word is much used in compound names of plants in Spanish; as, yerba buena Etym: [Sp., a good herb], a name applied in Spain to several kinds of mint (Mentha sativa, viridis, etc.), but in California universally applied to a common, sweet-scented labiate plant (Micromeria Douglasii). Yerba dol osa. Etym: [Sp., herb of the she-bear.] A kind of buckthorn (Rhamnus Californica). -- Yerba mansa. Etym: [Sp., a mild herb, soft herb.] A plant (Anemopsis Californica) with a pungent, aromatic rootstock, used medicinally by the Mexicans and the Indians. -- Yerba reuma. Etym: [Cf. Sp. reuma rheum, rheumatism.] A low California undershrub (Frankenia grandifolia).

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