| tragacanth | <botany> 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. Synonym: gum tragacanth. Origin: L. Tragacanthum tragacanth, tragacantha the plant producing tragacanth, Gr. A he-goat + a thorn: cf. F. Tragacanthe. (11 Mar 1998) |
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| tragacantha | A gummy exudation from Astragalus species, including A. Gummifer, shrubs of the eastern end of the Mediterranean; it occurs as bands or strings of a tough gummy substance, forming a jelly-like mucilage with 50 parts of water; used as a demulcent and excipient in emulsions and suspensions. Origin: G. Tragakantha, a gum-producing shrub, fr. Tragos, goat, + akanthos, thorn (05 Mar 2000) |