Adjacent Words

Mastic definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

MAS'TIC
MAS'TICATE, v.t. [L. mastico.] To chew; to grind with the teeth and prepare for swallowing and digestion; as, to masticate food.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: an aromatic exudate from the mastic tree; used chiefly in varnishes
2: a pasty cement used as an adhesive or filler
3: an evergreen shrub of the Mediterranean region that is cultivated for its resin [syn: mastic, mastic tree, lentisk, Pistacia lentiscus]

Merriam Webster's

noun Etymology: Middle English mastik, from Latin mastiche, from Greek mastich?, probably back-formation from mastichan Date: 14th century 1. an aromatic resinous exudate from mastic trees used chiefly in varnishes 2. any of various pasty materials used as protective coatings or cements

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. 1 a gum or resin exuded from the bark of the mastic tree, used in making varnish. 2 (in full mastic tree) the evergreen tree, Pistacia lentiscus, yielding this. 3 a waterproof filler and sealant used in building. 4 a liquor flavoured with mastic gum. Etymology: ME f. OF f. LL mastichum f. L mastiche f. Gk mastikhe, perh. f. mastikhao (see MASTICATE) with ref. to its use as chewing-gum

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Mastic Mas"tic, n. [F., fr. L. mastiche, mastichum, Gr. ?, fr. ? to chew, because of its being used in the East for chewing.] [Written also mastich.] 1. (Bot.) A low shrubby tree of the genus Pistacia (P. Lentiscus), growing upon the islands and coasts of the Mediterranean, and producing a valuable resin; -- called also, mastic tree. 2. A resin exuding from the mastic tree, and obtained by incision. The best is in yellowish white, semitransparent tears, of a faint smell, and is used as an astringent and an aromatic, also as an ingredient in varnishes. 3. A kind of cement composed of burnt clay, litharge, and linseed oil, used for plastering walls, etc. Barbary mastic (Bot.), the Pistachia Atlantica. Peruvian mastic tree (Bot.), a small tree (Schinus Molle) with peppery red berries; -- called also pepper tree. West Indian mastic (Bot.), a lofty tree (Bursera gummifera) full of gum resin in every part.