or ipecacuanha Dried rhizome and roots of either of two tropical New World plants (Cephaelis acuminata and C. ipecacuanha) of the madder family. It has been used since ancient times especially as a source of a drug to treat poisoning by inducing nausea and vomiting. The name also refers to the drug itself
A shrubby plant (Psychotria emetica) native to Central and South America, having small white flowers and strong-smelling roots that are the source of an inferior quality of ipecac