† nosesmartn.
Obsolete.
Any of several plants with a pungent smell or taste, as garden cress ( Lepidium sativum), watercress ( Nasturtium aquaticum), and wild mint ( Mentha aquatica).
ΘΚΠ
the world > plants > particular plants > cultivated or valued plants > particular food plant or plant product > particular vegetables > [noun] > leaf vegetables > cress
cressa700
town cresseOE
fen-cressc1000
well-cressOE
nasturtiumOE
watercressc1300
garth-cress?14..
watercress?a1450
women's meadwort?a1450
garden cressa1500
peppergrass?a1500
nosewort1563
nosesmart1589
water-rocket1605
nosewort1608
well grassa1646
cresson1657
water grass1708
tongue-grass1726
poor man's pepper1738
marsh-rocket1739
passerage1879
1589 J. Rider Bibliotheca Scholastica 1749 The hearb nose smart, Nasturtium.
1598 J. Florio Worlde of Wordes The hearbe wilde mint, or nose-smart. Also water cresses.
1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues at Nasitort Nose-smart, garden Cresse.
1655 T. Stanley Hist. Philos. I. iii. 72 The magnetick vertue of the Earth Would draw away the humour of my brain, Just as we see in nose-smart.
1696 E. Phillips New World of Words (new ed.) Nasturtium, the name of a Plant, otherwise called Nosesmart, or Cresses.
1755 S. Johnson Dict. Eng. Lang. Nosesmart, the herb cresses.]
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2003; most recently modified version published online September 2021).
<
n.1589