moonseed

moonseed
/moohn"seed'/, n.
1. any climbing plant of the genus Menispermum, having greenish-white flowers and crescent-shaped seeds.
[1730-40; MOON + SEED]

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▪ plant
      any of three species of woody vines constituting the genus Menispermum of the family Menispermaceae (order Ranunculales). They occur in East Asia, eastern North America, and Mexico. The North American species, Canada moonseed, or yellow parilla (M. canadense), with lobed leaves and greenish-white flowers, bears black, grapelike fruit with crescent-shaped seeds. M. dauricum, from East Asia, and M. mexicanum, from Mexico, have similar properties. In particular, the seeds of all these species may cause a curare-like poisoning; one of the ingredients in curare comes from another member of Menispermaceae (Chondrodendron tomentosum).

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Universalium. 2010.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Moonseed — is a common name of some flowering plants in the family Menispermaceae: Cocculus Menispermum Moonseed is also a 1998 science fiction book by Stephen Baxter. This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an …   Wikipedia

  • moonseed — [mo͞on′sēd΄] n. any of a genus (Menispermum) of twining vines of the moonseed family, with small clusters of purple berries and crescent shaped seeds adj. designating a family (Menispermaceae, order Ranunculales) of tropical dicotyledonous lianas …   English World dictionary

  • Moonseed — Moon seed , n. (Bot.) A climbing plant of the genus {Menispermum}; so called from the crescentlike form of the seeds. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • moonseed — noun plant of the family Menispermaceae having red or black fruit with crescent or ring shaped seeds • Hypernyms: ↑vine • Hyponyms: ↑common moonseed, ↑Canada moonseed, ↑yellow parilla, ↑Menispermum canadense, ↑Carolina moonseed, ↑ …   Useful english dictionary

  • moonseed — noun Date: 1739 a twining plant (Menispermum canadense of the family Menispermaceae, the moonseed family) of eastern North America that has crescent shaped seeds and black fruits …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • moonseed — noun A twining plant of the genus Menispermum, eponymous of the Menispermae or moonseed family The crescent shaped (hence their name) moonseeds bear black fruits See Also: moonbeam, moon blind, mooncalf, moon eyed, moonfish …   Wiktionary

  • moonseed — kanadinis mėnuliasėklis statusas T sritis vardynas apibrėžtis Mėnuliasėklinių šeimos vaistinis nuodingas augalas (Menispermum canadense), paplitęs Šiaurės Amerikoje. atitikmenys: lot. Menispermum canadense angl. yellow parilla; moonseed šaltinis… …   Lithuanian dictionary (lietuvių žodynas)

  • Moonseed (Stephen Baxter novel) — Moonseed   …   Wikipedia

  • moonseed family — noun herbaceous or woody climbers • Syn: ↑Menispermaceae, ↑family Menispermaceae • Hypernyms: ↑magnoliid dicot family • Member Holonyms: ↑Ranales, ↑order Ranales, ↑ …   Useful english dictionary

  • moonseed — n. any of several types of flowering vines bearing red or black fruit …   English contemporary dictionary

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