hemlocks
plural of hemlock
Source: Wiktionary
Hem"lock, n. Etym: [OE. hemeluc, humloc, AS. hemlic, hymlic.]
1. (Bot.)
Definition: The name of several poisonous umbelliferous herbs having finely cut leaves and small white flowers, as the Cicuta maculata, bulbifera, and virosa, and the Conium maculatum. See Conium.
Note: The potion of hemlock administered to Socrates is by some thought to have been a decoction of Cicuta virosa, or water hemlock, by others, of Conium maculatum.
2. (Bot.)
Definition: An evergreen tree common in North America (Abies, or Tsuga, Canadensis); hemlock spruce. The murmuring pines and the hemlocks. Longfellow.
3. The wood or timber of the hemlock tree. Ground hemlock, or Dwarf hemlock. See under Ground.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
31 January 2025
(noun) the act of dispersing or diffusing something; “the dispersion of the troops”; “the diffusion of knowledge”
The Boston Tea Party helped popularize coffee in America. The hefty tea tax imposed on the colonies in 1773 resulted in America switching from tea to coffee. In the lead up to the Revolutionary War, it became patriotic to sip java instead of tea. The Civil War made the drink more pervasive. Coffee helped energize tired troops, and drinking it became an expression of freedom.
