manchineel

[ man-chuh-neel ]

noun

a tropical American tree or shrub, Hippomane mancinella, of the spurge family, having a milky, highly caustic, poisonous sap.

Origin of manchineel

1620–30; earlier mancinell, mançanilla<French mancenille and its source, Spanish manzanilla, diminutive of manzana apple, Old Spanish mazana<Latin (māla) Matiāna (apples) of Matius Roman author of a cooking manual (1st century b.c.)

Words Nearby manchineel

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use manchineel in a sentence

The poison in this case is supposed to have been the manchineel (Hippomane).
The Romance of Plant Life | G. F. Scott Elliot
The poisonous manchineel was observed, a drop of whose milky juice will burn the flesh like vitriol.
Due South or Cuba Past and Present | Maturin M. Ballou
I took one and cut it in two, remarking that it contained a circle of seeds or pips, instead of the stone of the manchineel.
The Swiss Family Robinson | Johann David Wyss
"You went to sleep under the shade of some poison-trees, manchineel trees, we call them here," the doctor explained.
Plotting in Pirate Seas | Francis Rolt-Wheeler
Especially I warned them against the manchineel, which ought to grow in this part of the world.
The Swiss Family Robinson; or Adventures in a Desert Island | Johann David Wyss

British Dictionary definitions for manchineel

manchineel

/ (ˌmæntʃɪˈniːl) /

noun

a tropical American euphorbiaceous tree, Hippomane mancinella, having fruit and milky highly caustic poisonous sap, which causes skin blisters

Origin of manchineel

C17: via French from Spanish manzanilla

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

Browse