Illustration of peyote
- peyote 1
variants
or less commonly peyotl
1
plural peyote or peyotes
: a small, low, spineless cactus (Lophophora williamsii) of Mexico and southern Texas that has bluish- to grayish-green dome-shaped stems having jointed disk-shaped tubercles with tufts of woolly white hairs and that contains psychoactive alkaloids
Huichols speak of the peyote they gather as the flesh of deer, and of the tap root they customarily leave in the ground as its "bones," from which new plants will grow …—
Stacy B. Schaefer and Peter T. Furst
Stacy B. Schaefer and Peter T. FurstPeyote, a small, mescaline-laden cactus that grows in Mexico and Texas …—The Wilson Quarterly
The Wilson Quarterlycalled also mescal
2
: a hallucinogenic drug containing mescaline that is derived from the dried disk-shaped tops of the peyote cactus and is used especially in the religious ceremonies of some Indigenous American peoples
In my childhood home, the word "medicine" is how we referred to peyote. … At a very young age, I understood the sacredness of this medicine …—Dawn D. Davis
Dawn D. Daviscalled also mescal
see also peyote button
Examples of peyote in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Landau explains that in Mexico peyote has become scarce due to tourism, agriculture and mining.
—Food Drink Life, The Mercury News, 22 June 2024
The experience: Considered the most gentle of the plant medicine experiences, peyote elicits visual effects in a softer, less confronting manner than ayahuasca and psilocybin.
—Michaela Trimble, Condé Nast Traveler, 17 Apr. 2024
In 1981, the Department of Justice sanctioned the use of peyote, a psychoactive cactus, in Native American Church rituals.
—Ernesto Londoño Meridith Kohut, New York Times, 12 May 2024
Members of that church sued an Oregon state agency after losing their jobs for using peyote, which remained banned under state law.
—Ernesto Londoño Meridith Kohut, New York Times, 12 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for peyote 
Food Drink Life, The Mercury News, 22 June 2024
The experience: Considered the most gentle of the plant medicine experiences, peyote elicits visual effects in a softer, less confronting manner than ayahuasca and psilocybin.
—Michaela Trimble, Condé Nast Traveler, 17 Apr. 2024
In 1981, the Department of Justice sanctioned the use of peyote, a psychoactive cactus, in Native American Church rituals.
—Ernesto Londoño Meridith Kohut, New York Times, 12 May 2024
Members of that church sued an Oregon state agency after losing their jobs for using peyote, which remained banned under state law.
—Ernesto Londoño Meridith Kohut, New York Times, 12 May 2024
See all Example Sentences for peyote
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'peyote.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Peyote.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/peyote. Accessed 15 Jul. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
peyote
noun
pey·o·te
pā-ˈōt-ē 
1
: a drug containing mescaline that causes hallucinations and is obtained from the dried round and flattened tops of a small spineless cactus of the southwestern U.S. and Mexico
2
: the cactus from which peyote is obtained
called also mescal
Medical Definition
peyote
noun
pey·o·te
pā-ˈōt-ē
variants
also peyotl
1
: a small, low, spineless cactus (Lophophora williamsii) of Mexico and southern Texas that has bluish- to grayish-green dome-shaped stems having jointed disk-shaped tubercles with tufts of woolly white hairs and that contains psychoactive alkaloids
called also mescal
2
: a hallucinogenic drug containing mescaline that is derived from the dried disk-shaped tops of the peyote cactus and is used especially in the religious ceremonies of some Indigenous American peoples
called also mescal
see also peyote buttonLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
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