What does "ayahuasca" mean?

A giant vine native to South America (especially Banisteriopsis caapi), noted for its psychotropic properties.

What is a synonym for "ayahuasca"?

Common synonyms include: grandmother, hoasca, iowaska, yage, yage.

Pronounced //ˌaɪəˈwɑːskə//.

//ˌaɪəˈwɑːskə// noun

noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Noun

1
A giant vine native to South America (especially Banisteriopsis caapi), noted for its psychotropic properties. uncountable, usually
2
Any of various psychoactive infusions or decoctions prepared from this vine. uncountable, usually
"They make use of a narcotic drink called Ayahuasca, which produces effects similar to those of opium."

"They make use of a narcotic drink called Ayahuasca, which produces effects similar to those of opium."

From Spanish ayahuasca, from Quechua ayawaska, from aya (“spirit, ancestor”) + waska (“vine”). First use appears c. 1870. See cite below.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.