colocynth

[ kol-uh-sinth ]

noun
  1. a plant, Citrullus colocynthis, belonging to the gourd family, of the warmer parts of Asia, the Mediterranean region, etc., bearing a round, yellow or green fruit with a bitter pulp.

  2. the fruit of this plant.

  1. Pharmacology. the drug derived from the pulp of the unripe but full-grown fruit of this plant, used in medicine chiefly as a purgative.

Origin of colocynth

1
1555–65; <Latin colocynthis<Greek kolokynthís, variant of kolókyntha bitter gourd, bitter cucumber

Words Nearby colocynth

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How to use colocynth in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for colocynth

colocynth

/ (ˈkɒləsɪnθ) /


noun
  1. a cucurbitaceous climbing plant, Citrullus colocynthis, of the Mediterranean region and Asia, having bitter-tasting fruit

  2. the dried fruit pulp of this plant, used as a strong purgative

Origin of colocynth

1
C17: from Latin colocynthis, from Greek kolokunthis, from kolokunthē gourd, of obscure origin
  • German name: bitter apple

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