curcuma

[ kur-kyoo-muh ]

/ ˈkɜr kyʊ mə /

noun

any of various chiefly Old World plants belonging to the genus Curcuma, of the ginger family, as C. domestica, yielding turmeric, or C. zedoaria, yielding zedoary.

Nearby words

Origin of curcuma

1610–20; < New Latin < Arabic kurkum saffron, turmeric; cf. crocus

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for curcuma

Turmeric is the underground stem of the Curcuma tinctoria, the coloring principle being called curcumin.
Principles and Practice of Fur Dressing and Fur Dyeing|William E. Austin
Turmeric, the root of a plant called Curcuma longa, a native of the East Indies, used as a yellow dye.
A Treatise on Domestic Economy|Catherine Esther Beecher
Turmeric is a powder obtained from the ground-up tubers of Curcuma tinctoria, a plant found in India and other Eastern countries.
Vegetable Dyes|Ethel M. Mairet
Turmeric is the underground stem or tuber of Curcuma tinctoria, a plant growing abundantly in the East Indies.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 8, Slice 8|Various

Other changes of vegetables from climate, or other causes, are remarked in the Note on Curcuma in the same work.
Zoonomia, Vol. I|Erasmus Darwin

British Dictionary definitions for curcuma

curcuma

/ (ˈkɜːkjʊmə) /

noun

any tropical Asian tuberous plant of the genus Curcuma, such as C. longa, which is the source of turmeric, and C. zedoaria, which is the source of zedoary: family Zingiberaceae

Word Origin for curcuma

C17: from New Latin, from Arabic kurkum turmeric

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