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curcumin

[kur-kyoo-min]
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noun
  1. the compound C21H20O6, a major active ingredient in turmeric and thought to have antioxidant and anticancer properties.
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Origin of curcumin

1850–60; < curcum(a) + New Latin -ina -in2
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
British Dictionary definitions for curcumin

curcumin

noun
  1. a yellow pigment, derived from the rhizome of Curcuma longa, and the main active ingrediant of turmeric. It is an antioxidant and has anti-inflammatory properties
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Word Origin

C20: from curcuma
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

Word Origin and History for curcumin

n.

coloring matter, 1850, from Curcuma, genus name for plants of the ginger family, from which the chemical was drawn, Medieval Latin, from Arabic kurkum "saffron, tumeric." Cf. crocus.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper