TRAGACANTH
tragacanth
(noun) a gum used in pharmacy, adhesives, and textile printing
Source: WordNet® 3.1
Etymology
Noun
tragacanth (countable and uncountable, plural tragacanths)
A polysaccharide gum, extracted from several species of leguminous plants of the genus Astragalus, formerly used medicinally and now as a food additive. Also more fully gum tragacanth. [from 16th c.]
Synonyms
• E413 when used as a thickener, stabiliser and emulsifier
Source: Wiktionary
Trag"a*canth, n. Etym: [L. tragacanthum tragacanth, tragacantha the
plant producing tragacanth, Gr. tragacanthe.]
Definition: A kind of gum procured from a spiny leguminous shrub
(Astragalus gummifer) of Western Asia, and other species of
Astragalus. It comes in hard whitish or yellowish flakes or
filaments, and is nearly insoluble in water, but slowly swells into a
mucilaginous mass, which is used as a substitute for gum arabic in
medicine and the arts. Called also gum tragacanth.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition