licorice

especially British, liq·uo·rice

[lik-er-ish, lik-rish, lik-uh-ris]

noun

1. a Eurasian plant, Glycyrrhiza glabra, of the legume family.

2. the sweet-tasting, dried root of this plant or an extract made from it, used in medicine, confectionery, etc.

3. a candy flavored with licorice root.

4. any of various related or similar plants.

licorice

/ ˈlɪkərɪs /

noun

1. the usual US and Canadian spelling of liquorice

Word History and Origins

Origin of licorice¹

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English lycorys, from Anglo-French, from unattested Vulgar Latin liquiritia for Latin glycyrrhiza, from Greek glykýrrhiza “sweetroot (plant),” equivalent to glyký(s) “sweet” + rhíza “root”; root ¹, -ia

Example Sentences

There was a popular brand of licorice called “Little African,” with packaging that featured a cartoon alligator tugging playfully at a Black infant’s rag diaper.

From Los Angeles Times

Even so, its use here is brazen and strange, from this case of death by chocolate to an “E.T.” embezzlement in which Isabella befriends a baby Aquilops with red rope licorice.

From Los Angeles Times

Our brains know a cartoon isn’t real — be it a rascally rabbit, a culinary rat or a dragon with the same sheen as salt licorice — and yet our hearts gift it with life.

From Los Angeles Times

It’s the black licorice of dashes: Those who like it love it; those who don’t will loudly and repeatedly let you know.

From Salon

Raw, it has a crisp bite, with a licorice flavor that is somewhere between anise and the effervescence of a lemon-lime soda: refreshing, cool, neutralizing.

From Salon