Standard Lemma guide
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
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noun
A bitter balsamic resin or resinous exudation obtained from tropical American trees of the family Burseraceae (Bursera tomentosa and Icica tacamahaca), from East Indian trees of the genus Calophyllum, or from the balsam poplar (Populus balsamifera).
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Any tree yielding tacamahac resin, especially, in North America, balsam poplar (Populus balsamifera) or balm of Gilead.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
poplar of northeastern North America with broad heart-shaped leaves
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: balsam poplar, hackmatack, Populus balsamifera
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: poplar, poplar tree
History
From Spanish, from Nahuatl thecomahaca, to use the spelling of Hernandez 1614. In European languages there was contamination between tacamahac and various Algonquian words containing the final Proto-Algonquian *-a·xkw- (“hardwood or deciduous tree”), including the sources of tamarack and hackmatack, as was already recognized by Chamberlain 1902.
