castor-oil plant

cas·tor-oil plant  (kstr-oil)

n.

A poisonous, ornamental, tropical African herb or tree (Ricinus communis) having palmately lobed leaves and unisexual flowers and yielding a seed oil of commercial and medicinal value.

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castor-oil plant

n

(Life Sciences & Allied Applications / Plants) a tall euphorbiaceous Indian plant, Ricinus communis, cultivated in tropical regions for ornament and for its poisonous seeds, from which castor oil is extracted Also called (US and Canadian) castor bean

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

castor-oil plant - large shrub of tropical Africa and Asia having large palmate leaves and spiny capsules containing seeds that are the source of castor oil and ricin; widely naturalized throughout the tropics castor bean plant, palma christ, palma christi, Ricinus communis castor bean - the toxic seed of the castor-oil plant; source of castor oil genus Ricinus, Ricinus - a genus of herb having only one known species: castor-oil plant bush, shrub - a low woody perennial plant usually having several major stems