fustic

American  

[fuhs-tik] / ˈfʌs tɪk /

noun

1. the wood of a large, tropical American tree, Chlorophora tinctoria, of the mulberry family, yielding a light-yellow dye.

2. the tree itself.

3. the dye.

4. any of several other dyewoods.

---

fustic British  

/ ˈfʌstɪk /

noun

1. Also called: old fustic.  a large tropical American moraceous tree, Chlorophora tinctoria

2. the yellow dye obtained from the wood of this tree

3. any of various trees or shrubs that yield a similar dye, esp Rhus cotinus ( young fustic ), a European sumach

---

Etymology

Origin of fustic

1425–75; late Middle English fustik < Middle French fustoc < Arabic fustuq < Persian pistah; akin to Greek pistákē pistachio tree

Example Sentences

They also serve as substitutes for fustic in wool or silk dyeing, and are dyed either on a chromium mordant, or first in an acid bath and afterwards saddened with bichromate of potash.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 8 "Dubner" to "Dyeing" by Various

By boiling two handfuls of fustic and a table-spoonful of turmeric together, and repeating the above process, there will be produced a golden yellow, which is very good for fly making.

From Blacker's Art of Fly Making, &c. Comprising Angling, & Dyeing of Colours, with Engravings of Salmon & Trout Flies by Blacker, William

The fustic chips should be well soaked, and afterward boiled for a half-hour to extract the dye, which will be a strong and fast yellow.

From How to make rugs by Wheeler, Candace

Dye with 24 per cent fustic and 4 per cent madder for 45 minutes.

From Vegetable Dyes Being a Book of Recipes and Other Information Useful to the Dyer by Mairet, Ethel M.

This tree is sometimes called old fustic, in order to distinguish it from another commercial dye called young fustic, which is obtained in Europe from a species of Rhus.

From Catalogue of Economic Plants in the Collection of the U. S. Department of Agriculture by Saunders, William