wild indigo

noun

: baptisia
especially : one (Baptisia tinctoria) of eastern North America with bright yellow flowers and small trifoliolate leaves

Examples of wild indigo in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The colors and smells of dwarf wild indigo, prairie verbena, golden smoke, firewheel, and purple aster, among other flora, are easy to love. Jamie Siebrase, Denver Post, 22 May 2025 The scarce butterfly can be found in grasslands and around host plants such as wild blue lupine and wild indigo. Mariyam Muhammad, The Enquirer, 9 July 2024 Advertisement Baisden says perennials such as yarrow (Achillea millefolium), wild indigo (Baptisia tinctoria), rattlesnake master (Eryngium yuccifolium) and fragrant sumac (Rhus aromatica) are survivors even in parching sun. Tovah Martin, Washington Post, 12 July 2023 By planting wild indigo, gray birch, and switchgrass, his goal was to take a chunk of the Catskills and put it on his roof. The Editors, Outside Online, 10 Nov. 2020

Word History

First Known Use

1744, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of wild indigo was in 1744

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Cite this Entry

“Wild indigo.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wild%20indigo. Accessed 6 Jul. 2026.

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