Licorice
Licorice (lik"o*ris) , noun
[Old English licoris, through old French, from Latin liquiritia, corrupted from glycyrrhiza, Greek glyky`rriza; glyky`s sweet + "ri`za root. Compare Glycerin, Glycyrrhiza, Wort.]
1.
(Botany) A plant of the genus Glycyrrhiza (Glycyrrhiza glabra), the root of which abounds with a sweet juice, and is much used in demulcent compositions.
2.
The inspissated juice of licorice root, used as a confection and for medicinal purposes.
Collocations (5)
Licorice fern (Botany) , a name of several kinds of polypody which have rootstocks of a sweetish flavor.
Licorice weed (Botany) , the tropical plant Scapania dulcis.
Mountain licorice (Botany) , a kind of clover (Trifolium alpinum), found in the Alps. It has large purplish flowers and a sweetish perennial rootstock.
Wild licorice (Botany) , (a) The North American perennial herb Glycyrrhiza lepidota. (b) Certain broad-leaved cleavers (Galium circazans and Galium lanceolatum). (c) The leguminous climber Abrus precatorius, whose scarlet and black seeds are called black-eyed Susans. Its roots are used as a substitute for those of true licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra).