wormwood

/ˈwɜrmˌwʊd/
noun
  1. A bitter-tasting plant (genus Artemisia) used in making absinthe and some medicines.
    • Wormwood is a key ingredient in the liqueur absinthe.
    • The garden had a patch of wormwood with silvery leaves.
    • Some people use wormwood tea to aid digestion.
  2. Something that causes bitterness or sorrow; a source of unpleasant memories or feelings.
    • For the losing team, the defeat was wormwood.
    • The memory of the argument was wormwood to her.
    • His harsh words were wormwood to my ears.
Synonyms
What does "wormwood" mean? | whatsthatwordmean | whatsthatwordmean