licorice

[ lik-er-ish, lik-rish, lik-uh-ris ]
/ ˈlɪk ər ɪʃ, ˈlɪk rɪʃ, ˈlɪk ə rɪs /

noun

a Eurasian plant, Glycyrrhiza glabra, of the legume family.
the sweet-tasting, dried root of this plant or an extract made from it, used in medicine, confectionery, etc.
a candy flavored with licorice root.
any of various related or similar plants.

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Also especially British, liq·uo·rice .

Origin of licorice

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English lycorys, from Anglo-French, from unattested Vulgar Latin liquiritia for Latin glycyrrhiza, from Greek glykýrriza “sweetroot (plant),” equivalent to glyký(s) “sweet” + rhíza “root”; see root1, -ia

Words nearby licorice

lick one's chops, lick one's wounds, lick someone's boots, lickspittle, lick the stuffing out of, licorice, licorice stick, lictor, lid, lidar, Liddel Hart
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for licorice

British Dictionary definitions for licorice

licorice
/ (ˈlɪkərɪs) /

noun

the usual US and Canadian spelling of liquorice
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