ergot
noun
er·got ˈər-gət 
-ˌgät
1
: the black or dark purple sclerotium of fungi (genus Claviceps) that occurs as a club-shaped body replacing the seed of a grass (such as rye)
also : a fungus bearing ergots
2
: a disease of rye and other cereals caused by an ergot fungus
3
a
: the dried sclerotia of an ergot fungus grown on rye and containing several alkaloids (such as ergonovine and ergotamine)
b
: any of such alkaloids used medicinally for their contractile effect on smooth muscle (as of the uterus and or blood vessels)
ergotic
(ˌ)ər-ˈgä-tik
adjective 
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web Jackson sent a prescription for ergot and rye, a potion used at the time to induce miscarriages, to her home in Greencastle, Indiana, about 150 miles northwest of Louisville. 
Andrew Wolfson, The Courier-Journal, 4 May 2022 Further, the author notes a weather period at the time that would have been conducive to the production of a lot of ergot on rye grown in the area’s lowlands. Popular Science, 11 Mar. 2020 Further, the author notes a weather period at the time that would have been conducive to the production of a lot of ergot on rye grown in the area’s lowlands. Popular Science, 11 Mar. 2020 Further, the author notes a weather period at the time that would have been conducive to the production of a lot of ergot on rye grown in the area’s lowlands. Popular Science, 11 Mar. 2020 Further, the author notes a weather period at the time that would have been conducive to the production of a lot of ergot on rye grown in the area’s lowlands. Popular Science, 11 Mar. 2020 Further, the author notes a weather period at the time that would have been conducive to the production of a lot of ergot on rye grown in the area’s lowlands. Popular Science, 11 Mar. 2020 Further, the author notes a weather period at the time that would have been conducive to the production of a lot of ergot on rye grown in the area’s lowlands. Popular Science, 11 Mar. 2020 Further, the author notes a weather period at the time that would have been conducive to the production of a lot of ergot on rye grown in the area’s lowlands. Popular Science, 11 Mar. 2020 See More
Andrew Wolfson, The Courier-Journal, 4 May 2022 Further, the author notes a weather period at the time that would have been conducive to the production of a lot of ergot on rye grown in the area’s lowlands. Popular Science, 11 Mar. 2020 Further, the author notes a weather period at the time that would have been conducive to the production of a lot of ergot on rye grown in the area’s lowlands. Popular Science, 11 Mar. 2020 Further, the author notes a weather period at the time that would have been conducive to the production of a lot of ergot on rye grown in the area’s lowlands. Popular Science, 11 Mar. 2020 Further, the author notes a weather period at the time that would have been conducive to the production of a lot of ergot on rye grown in the area’s lowlands. Popular Science, 11 Mar. 2020 Further, the author notes a weather period at the time that would have been conducive to the production of a lot of ergot on rye grown in the area’s lowlands. Popular Science, 11 Mar. 2020 Further, the author notes a weather period at the time that would have been conducive to the production of a lot of ergot on rye grown in the area’s lowlands. Popular Science, 11 Mar. 2020 Further, the author notes a weather period at the time that would have been conducive to the production of a lot of ergot on rye grown in the area’s lowlands. Popular Science, 11 Mar. 2020 See More Word History
Etymology
borrowed from French, "spur on a rooster, a similar growth on another bird or mammal, fungal sclerotium resembling a rooster's spur," earlier also argot, going back to Old French argoz (subject case) "spur of a bird or animal," derivative from a Gallo-Romance base *arg- "spine, spiny or thorny plant," probably from a pre-Latin substratal language
Note: For a list and discussion of Romance dialect words based on *arg- see Französisches etymologisches Wörterbuch, vol. 25, pp. 182-88.
First Known Use
1683, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Medical Definition
ergot
noun
er·got ˈər-gət -ˌgät
-ˌgät 1
a
: the black or dark purple sclerotium of fungi of the genus Claviceps that occurs as a club-shaped body which replaces the seed of various grasses (as rye)
b
: any fungus of the genus Claviceps
2
: a disease of rye and other cereals caused by fungi of the genus Claviceps and characterized by the presence of ergots in the seed heads compare ergotism
3
a
: the dried sclerotial bodies of an ergot fungus grown on rye and containing several ergot alkaloids
b
: ergot alkaloid