torchwood (plural torchwoods)
(uncountable) Wood exhibiting fungal bioluminescence or foxfire.
Synonym: foxfire (one sense)
(uncountable) Wood used to make torches.
(countable) A tree yielding wood suitable for making torches, especially a tree of the genus Amyris.
Amyris balsamifera (balsam torchwood)
Amyris diatrypa (hairy torchwood)
Amyris elemifera (sea torchwood)
Amyris madrensis (mountain torchwood)
Amyris texana (Texas torchwood)
(countable) A type of cactus, Cactus heptagonus.
Source: Wiktionary
Torch"wood`, n. (Bot.)
Definition: The inflammable wood of certain trees (Amyris balsamifera, A. Floridana, etc.); also, the trees themselves.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
25 November 2024
(noun) infestation with slender threadlike roundworms (filaria) deposited under the skin by the bite of black fleas; when the eyes are involved it can result in blindness; common in Africa and tropical America
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.
