tamarind
[tam-uh-rind]
- the pod of a large, tropical tree, Tamarindus indica, of the legume family, containing seeds enclosed in a juicy acid pulp that is used in beverages and food.
- the tree itself.
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Origin of tamarind
1525–35; < Medieval Latin tamarindus ≪ Arabic tamr hindī literally, Indian date
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for tamarind
Contemporary Examples
Place the tamarind glaze in a squeeze bottle and drizzle decoratively over the top of the chop.
Historical Examples
Tamarind, or some very acid sauce is used to impart to it some flavour.
British BorneoW. H. Treacher
You must know that the tamarind was formerly a large tree, like the olive and walnut.
Italian Popular TalesThomas Frederick Crane
In South Malabar there is not as a rule any procession to the tamarind tree.
Castes and Tribes of Southern IndiaEdgar Thurston
She is sometimes, in addition, beaten on the back with tamarind switches.
Castes and Tribes of Southern IndiaEdgar Thurston
Again a movement, this time among the branches of a tamarind tree.
The Red LureRoy J. Snell
tamarind
- a leguminous tropical evergreen tree, Tamarindus indica, having pale yellow red-streaked flowers and brown pulpy pods, each surrounded by a brittle shell
- the acid fruit of this tree, used as a food and to make beverages and medicines
- the wood of this tree
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Word Origin
C16: from Medieval Latin tamarindus, ultimately from Arabic tamr hindī Indian date, from tamr date + hindī Indian, from Hind India
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for tamarind
n.
by c.1400, ultimately from Arabic tamr hindi, literally "date of India." First element cognate with Hebrew tamar "palm tree, date palm."
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper