tamarisk

[ tam-uh-risk ]

/ ˈtæm ə rɪsk /

noun

any Old World tropical plant of the genus Tamarix, especially T. gallica, an ornamental Mediterranean shrub or small tree having slender, feathery branches.

a shrub or small tree, Tamarix chinensis, of Eurasia, having scalelike leaves and clusters of pink flowers, naturalized in the southwestern U.S., where it has become a troublesome weed.

Nearby words

tamarau, tamari, tamarillo, tamarin, tamarind, tamarisk, tamarisk gerbil, tamas, tamasha, tamasic, tamatave

Origin of tamarisk

1350–1400; Middle English tamariscus < Late Latin, variant of Latin tamarix, perhaps of Hamitic orig.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for tamarisk

He covered their hoofs with tamarisk twigs, and, still further to deceive the pursuer, drove them backward into a cave at Pylos.
The Classic Myths in English Literature and in Art (2nd ed.) (1911)|Charles Mills Gayley
No tree of any height is to be seen here, but the tamarisk grows in great abundance.
The Argosy|Various
She put her horse at it and came out among the tiny humps on which grew the halfa grass and the tamarisk bushes.
The Garden Of Allah|Robert Hichens
Here and there a carob tree or a clump of tamarisk at a tomb.
Letters from the Holy Land|Elizabeth Butler

The air smelled sweet in the shade of the tamarisk; there was ineffable peace.
The Patrician|John Galsworthy

British Dictionary definitions for tamarisk

tamarisk

/ (ˈtæmərɪsk) /

noun

any of various ornamental trees and shrubs of the genus Tamarix, of the Mediterranean region and S and SE Asia, having scalelike leaves, slender branches, and feathery clusters of pink or whitish flowers: family Tamaricaceae

Word Origin for tamarisk

C15: from Late Latin tamariscus, from Latin tamarix

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 tamarisk

tamarisk

southern European evergreen shrub, c.1400, from Late Latin tamariscus, variant of tamarix, of unknown origin, probably a borrowing from a non-Indo-European language, perhaps related to Hebrew tamar "palm tree, date palm" (see tamarind).