Adjacent Words

Smilax definitions

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WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: sometimes placed in Smilacaceae [syn: Smilax, genus Smilax]
2: fragile twining plant of South Africa with bright green flattened stems and glossy foliage popular as a floral decoration [syn: smilax, Asparagus asparagoides]

Merriam Webster's

noun Etymology: Latin, bindweed, yew, from Greek Date: 1551 1. greenbrier 2. a tender twining asparagus (Asparagus asparagoides) of southern Africa that has ovate bright green cladophylls which are often used in floral arrangements

Britannica Concise

Any of about 300 species of woody or herbaceous vines, variously known as catbriers and greenbriers, that make up the genus Smilax (family Smilacaceae), native to tropical and temperate regions. The stems of many species are covered with prickles, the lower leaves are scalelike, and the leathery upper leaves have untoothed blades with three to nine large veins. White or yellow-green flowers are followed by clusters of red or bluish-black berries. Common catbrier (S. rotundifolia) and carrion flower (S. herbacea) of E N. America are sometimes cultivated to form impenetrable thickets. See also sarsaparilla.

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. 1 any climbing shrub of the genus Smilax, the roots of some species of which yield sarsaparilla. 2 a climbing kind of asparagus, Asparagus medeoloides, used decoratively by florists. Etymology: L f. Gk, = bindweed

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Sarsaparilla Sar`sa*pa*ril"la, n. [Sp. zarzaparrilla; zarza a bramble (perhaps fr. Bisc. zartzia) + parra a vine, or Parillo, a physician said to have discovered it.] (Bot.) (a) Any plant of several tropical American species of Smilax. (b) The bitter mucilaginous roots of such plants, used in medicine and in sirups for soda, etc. Note: The name is also applied to many other plants and their roots, especially to the Aralia nudicaulis, the wild sarsaparilla of the United States.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Smilax Smi"lax, n. [L., bindweed, Gr. ???.] (Bot.) (a) A genus of perennial climbing plants, usually with a prickly woody stem; green brier, or cat brier. The rootstocks of certain species are the source of the medicine called sarsaparilla. (b) A delicate trailing plant (Myrsiphyllum asparagoides) much used for decoration. It is a native of the Cape of Good Hope.