Astragalus

2 definitions found

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

  Astragalus \As*trag"a*lus\, n. [L. See {Astragal}.]
     1. (Anat.) The ankle bone, or hock bone; the bone of the
        tarsus which articulates with the tibia at the ankle.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. (Bot.) A genus of papilionaceous plants, of the tribe


        {Galege[ae]}, containing numerous species, two of which
        are called, in English, {milk vetch} and {licorice vetch}.
        {Gum tragacanth} is obtained from different oriental
        species, particularly the {Astragalus gummifer} and
        {Astragalus verus}.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     3. (Arch.) See {Astragal}, 1.
        [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  Astragalus
       n 1: large genus of annual or perennial herbs or shrubs of north
            temperate regions; largest genus in the family
            Leguminosae [syn: {genus Astragalus}]
       2: the bone in the ankle that articulates with the leg bones to
          form the ankle joint [syn: {anklebone}, {astragal}, {talus}]