Asafetida

3 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Asafetida \As`a*fet"i*da\, Asafoetida \As`a*f[oe]t"i*da\, n.
     [Asa + L. foetidus fetid.]
     The fetid gum resin or inspissated juice of a large
     umbelliferous plant ({Ferula asafoetida}) of Persia and the
     East Indies. It is used in medicine as an antispasmodic.
     [Written also {assafoetida}.]


     [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Ferula \Fer"u*la\, n. [L. ferula giant fennel (its stalks were
     used in punishing schoolboys), rod, whip, fr. ferire to
     strike; akin to OHG. berjan, Icel. berja. Cf. {Ferule}.]
     1. A ferule. [Obs.] --Beau. & Fl.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. The imperial scepter in the Byzantine or Eastern Empire.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     3. [capitalized] A genus of plants of the parsley family
        {Apiaceae} (of the order {Umbelliferae}), including some
        yielding {asafetida}. Members include {Ferula asafoetida}
        ({Ferula foetida}), the giant fennel ({Ferula communis)},
        and {Ferula orientalis}.
        [PJC]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  asafetida
       n : the brownish gum resin of various plants; has strong taste
           and odor; formerly used as an antispasmodic [syn: {asafoetida}]