tamarisk
[tam-uh-risk]
- 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.
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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. 2018
Examples from the Web for tamarisk
Historical Examples
The air smelled sweet in the shade of the tamarisk; there was ineffable peace.
The PatricianJohn Galsworthy
But all that came was the sigh of the sea, and of the wind in the tamarisk.
The PatricianJohn Galsworthy
The scenery was varied by thickets of mimosas, with here and there a baobab or a tamarisk.
Some Heroes of TravelW. H. Davenport Adams
The dom palm, tamarisk, acacia and wild senna are also found.
The tamarisk flowers have more color in them than your face.
In the Roar of the SeaSabine Baring-Gould
tamarisk
- 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
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Word Origin
C15: from Late Latin tamariscus, from Latin tamarix
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 tamarisk
n.
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).
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper