hoasca

noun

hoas·​ca ˈwa-skə How to pronounce hoasca (audio)
ˈwä-
: ayahuasca
Hoasca … is brewed from two plants that grow in the Amazon River Basin, and it contains DMT, a hallucinogen that the American government regards as a controlled substance.—Jeffrey Toobin
Today this bitter tea, also known as hoasca, has become the sacramental ritual of two modern religions in Brazil.—Lisa Melton

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Brazilian Portuguese, probably borrowed, with the loss of the initial syllables, from American Spanish ayahuasca ayahuasca

First Known Use

1996, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of hoasca was in 1996

Dictionary Entries Near hoasca

hoary willow

hoasca

hoast

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Hoasca.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hoasca. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.

Copy Citation

Share

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See All

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Plural and Possessive Names: A Guide

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See All

Popular in Wordplay

See All

8 Words with Fascinating Histories

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments

Birds Say the Darndest Things

10 Words from Taylor Swift Songs (Merriam's Version)

10 Scrabble Words Without Any Vowels
See All

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
little chihuahua dressing like a turkey for thanksgiving
Giving Thanks Quiz Decide which words express gratitude and which gi...