Adjacent Words

Turmeric definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

TUR'MERIC, n. Indian saffron; a medicinal root brought from the East Indies, the root of the Curcuma longa. It is externally grayish, but internally of a deep lively yellow or saffron color. It has a slight aromatic smell, and a bitterish, slightly acrid taste. It is used for dyeing, and in some cases, as a medicine. This name is sometimes given to the blood-root of America.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: widely cultivated tropical plant of India having yellow flowers and a large aromatic deep yellow rhizome; source of a condiment and a yellow dye [syn: turmeric, Curcuma longa, Curcuma domestica]
2: ground dried rhizome of the turmeric plant used as seasoning

Merriam Webster's

noun Etymology: Middle English turmeryte Date: 15th century 1. an Indian perennial herb (Curcuma longa syn. C. domestica) of the ginger family with a large aromatic yellow rhizome 2. the boiled, dried, and usually ground rhizome of the turmeric plant used as a coloring agent, a flavoring, or a stimulant 3. a yellow to reddish-brown dyestuff obtained from turmeric

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. 1 an E. Indian plant, Curcuma longa, of the ginger family, yielding aromatic rhizomes used as a spice and for yellow dye. 2 this powdered rhizome used as a spice esp. in curry-powder. Etymology: 16th-c. forms tarmaret etc. perh. f. F terre mérite and mod.L terra merita, of unkn. orig.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Turmeric Tur"mer*ic, n. [F. terre-m['e]rite, NL. terramerita, turmerica; apparently meaning, excellent earth, but perhaps a corruption of Ar. kurkum. Cf. Curcuma.] 1. (Bot.) An East Indian plant of the genus Curcuma, of the Ginger family. 2. The root or rootstock of the Curcuma longa. It is externally grayish, but internally of a deep, lively yellow or saffron color, and has a slight aromatic smell, and a bitterish, slightly acrid taste. It is used for a dye, a medicine, a condiment, and a chemical test.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Turmeric Tur"mer*ic, a. (Chem.) Of or pertaining to turmeric; resembling, or obtained from, turmeric; specif., designating an acid obtained by the oxidation of turmerol. Turmeric paper (Chem.), paper impregnated with turmeric and used as a test for alkaline substances, by which it is changed from yellow to brown. Turmeric root. (Bot.) (a) Bloodroot. (b) Orangeroot.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Bloodroot Blood"root`, n. (Bot.) A plant (Sanguinaria Canadensis), with a red root and red sap, and bearing a pretty, white flower in early spring; -- called also puccoon, redroot, bloodwort, tetterwort, turmeric, and Indian paint. It has acrid emetic properties, and the rootstock is used as a stimulant expectorant. See Sanguinaria. Note: In England the name is given to the tormentil, once used as a remedy for dysentery.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

Turmeric is a yellow spice that is used to flavour food such as curry.