American sarsaparilla

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• sarsaparilla — [sas΄pə ril′ə, särs΄pə ril′ə; sär΄səril′ə] n. [Sp zarzaparrilla < zarza, bramble + parrilla, dim. of parra, vine] 1. any of a number of tropical American, spiny, woody vines (genus Smilax) of the lily family, with large, fragrant roots and… …   English World 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… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

• sarsaparilla — tropical American plant, 1570s, from Sp. zarzaparrilla, from zarza bramble (from Arabic sharas thorny plant or Basque sartzia bramble ) + parrilla, dim. of parra vine, of unknown origin. In 16c. 17c. the dried roots were held to be efficient in… …   Etymology dictionary

• sarsaparilla — /sas peuh ril euh, sahr seuh peuh , sahr speuh /, n. 1. any of various climbing or trailing tropical American plants belonging to the genus Smilax, of the lily family, having alternate leaves, umbels of flowers, and a root that has been used in… …   Universalium

• sarsaparilla — /saspəˈrɪlə / (say sahspuh riluh) noun 1. any of various climbing or trailing plants of the widely distributed genus Smilax, having a root which has been much used in medicine as an alterant. 2. Also, native sarsaparilla. any of several plants,… …  

• sarsaparilla — noun Etymology: Spanish zarzaparrilla, from zarza bush + parrilla, diminutive of parra vine Date: 1577 1. a. any of various tropical American greenbriers b. the dried roots of a sarsaparilla used especially as a flavoring 2. any of various plants …   New Collegiate Dictionary

• sarsaparilla — The dried root of Smilax aristolochiaefolia (Mexican s.), S. regelii (Honduras s.), S. febrifuga (Ecuadorian s.), or of undetermined species of Smilax (family Liliaceae), a thorny vine widely distributed throughout the tropical and semitropical… …   Medical dictionary

• sarsaparilla — n. variety of tropical American plant from the genus Smilax; root of the sarsaparilla plant (used to treat psoriasis); beverage made from the root of the sarsaparilla plant …   English contemporary dictionary

• sarsaparilla — sar•sa•pa•ril•la [[t]ˌsæs pəˈrɪl ə, ˌsɑr sə pə , ˌsɑr spə [/t]] n. pl. las 1) pln any of various tropical American vines of the genus Smilax, having serrated heart shaped leaves 2) pln the root of any of these vines 3) an extract or other… …   From formal English to slang

• sarsaparilla — noun a) Any of various tropical American vines, of the genus Smilax, having fragrant roots b) The dried roots of these plants, or a flavoring material extracted from these roots …   Wiktionary

• sarsaparilla — [ˌsα:s(ə)pə rɪlə] noun 1》 a preparation of the dried rhizomes of various plants, especially smilax, used to flavour some drinks and medicines and formerly as a tonic.     ↘a sweet drink flavoured with this. 2》 the tropical American climbing plant …   English new terms dictionary