tragacanth

trag·a·canth  (trg-knth, trj-)

n.

1. Any of various thorny shrubs of the genus Astragalus, especially A. gummifer, of the Middle East, yielding a gum used in pharmacy, adhesives, and textile printing.

2. The gum of this plant.

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[Latin tragacantha, from Greek tragakantha : tragos, goat + akantha, thorn.]

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tragacanth [ˈtrægəˌkænθ]

n

1. (Life Sciences & Allied Applications / Plants) any of various spiny leguminous plants of the genus Astragalus, esp A. gummifer, of Asia, having clusters of white, yellow, or purple flowers, and yielding a substance that is made into a gum

2. (Life Sciences & Allied Applications / Plants) the gum obtained from any of these plants, used in the manufacture of pills and lozenges, etc.

[from French tragacante, from Latin tragacantha goat's thorn, from Greek tragakantha, from tragos goat + akantha thorn]

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

tragacanth - a gum used in pharmacy, adhesives, and textile printing gum - any of various substances (soluble in water) that exude from certain plants; they are gelatinous when moist but harden on drying