balm-of-Gilead
any of several plants of the genus Commiphora, especially C. opobalsamum and C. meccanensis, which yield a fragrant oleoresin.
Also called Mecca balsam. the resin itself, a turbid yellow, green, or brownish-red water-insoluble gluey liquid, used chiefly in perfumery.
a hybrid North American poplar, Populus gileadensis, cultivated as a shade tree.
Origin of balm-of-Gilead
1Words Nearby balm-of-Gilead
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use balm-of-Gilead in a sentence
Once in a long while you may see a balm-of-Gilead tree, or a clump of sapling poplars, planted near the door.
Little Rivers | Henry van DykeThe white fir grew to a much larger tree than the balm-of-Gilead he had known in the East, and the lower branches were tough.
The Boy With the U. S. Foresters | Francis Rolt-WheelerThey were making it into five hay-cocks, which were arranged in a circle under a huge balm-of-Gilead tree.
Five Mice in a Mouse-trap | Laura E. RichardsWhat an unlooked for flight was this from our shadowy avenue of black-ash and balm-of-Gilead trees into the infinite!
The Oxford Book of American Essays | VariousNor was the enthusiasm of Billy's send-off balm-of-Gilead to his soul as the carriage moved away from the hotel steps.
The Bachelors | William Dana Orcutt
British Dictionary definitions for balm of Gilead
any of several trees of the burseraceous genus Commiphora, esp C. opobalsamum of Africa and W Asia, that yield a fragrant oily resin: Compare balm (def. 1), myrrh (def. 1)
the resin exuded by these trees
a North American hybrid female poplar tree, Populus gileadensis (or P. candicans), with broad heart-shaped leaves
a fragrant resin obtained from the balsam fir: See also Canada balsam
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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