gambier

American  

[gam-beer] / ˈgæm bɪər /

Or gambir

noun

1. an astringent extract obtained from the leaves and young shoots of a tropical Asian shrub, Uncaria gambir, of the madder family, used in medicine, dyeing, tanning, etc.

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gambier British  

/ ˈɡæmbɪə /

noun

1. an astringent resinous substance obtained from a rubiaceous tropical Asian woody climbing plant, Uncaria gambir (or U. gambier ): used as an astringent and tonic and in tanning

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Etymology

Origin of gambier

First recorded in 1820–30, gambier is from the Malay word gambir the name of the plant

Example Sentences

After that of Rhio, the next best gambier is that of Lingin.

From The Commercial Products of the Vegetable Kingdom Considered in Their Various Uses to Man and in Their Relation to the Arts and Manufactures; Forming a Practical Treatise & Handbook of Reference for the Colonist, Manufacturer, Merchant, and Consumer, on the Cultivation, Preparation for Shipment, and Commercial Value, &c. of the Various Substances Obtained From Trees and Plants, Entering into the Husbandry of Tropical and Sub-tropical Regions, &c. by Simmonds, P. L.

They are raised from seed, and are topped to eight or ten feet, when the gambier is to be prepared.

From The Commercial Products of the Vegetable Kingdom Considered in Their Various Uses to Man and in Their Relation to the Arts and Manufactures; Forming a Practical Treatise & Handbook of Reference for the Colonist, Manufacturer, Merchant, and Consumer, on the Cultivation, Preparation for Shipment, and Commercial Value, &c. of the Various Substances Obtained From Trees and Plants, Entering into the Husbandry of Tropical and Sub-tropical Regions, &c. by Simmonds, P. L.

Its dense, dark jungle is broken up mainly by pepper and gambier plantations, the latter specially in new clearings.

From The Golden Chersonese and the Way Thither by Bird, Isabella L. (Isabella Lucy)

Rice, pepper, gambier, coffee and palms are cultivated, and fishing and the collection of forest produce are further industries, but none of these is of importance.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 3, Part 1, Slice 2 "Baconthorpe" to "Bankruptcy" by Various

N. of Singapore; half the population are Chinese; exports gambier, pepper, and coffee.

From The Nuttall Encyclopædia Being a Concise and Comprehensive Dictionary of General Knowledge by Nuttall, P. Austin