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bal⋅sam

  [bawl-suhm]
Use balsam in a Sentence
–noun
1. any of various fragrant exudations from certain trees, esp. trees of the genus Commiphora, as balm-of-Gilead. Compare balm (def. 1).
2. the similar products yielded by the leguminous trees Myroxylon pereirae and M. balsamum, of South America. Compare Peru balsam, tolu.
3. oleoresin (def. 1).
4. any of certain transparent turpentines, as Canada balsam.
5. a plant or tree yielding a balsam.
6. balsam fir.
7. any of several plants belonging to the genus Impatiens, as I. balsamina, a common garden annual. Compare balsam family.
8. any aromatic ointment for ceremonial or medicinal use.
9. any agency that heals, soothes, or restores: the balsam of understanding and appreciation.
Origin:
bef. 1000; ME balsamum, balsaum, OE balzaman < L balsamum < Gk bálsamon. See balm

Related forms:
bal⋅sa⋅ma⋅ceous  [bawl-suh-mey-shuhs] , adjective
bal⋅sam⋅ic  [bawl-sam-ik] , adjective
bal⋅sam⋅y, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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bal·sam   (bôl'səm)   
n.  
    1. Any of several aromatic resins, such as balsam of Peru and balsam of Tolu, that contain considerable amounts of benzoic acid, cinnamic acid, or both, or their esters.
    2. Any of several other fragrant plant resins, such as Canada balsam.
    3. A similar substance, especially a fragrant ointment used as medication; a balm.
  2. Any of various trees, especially the balsam fir, yielding an aromatic resinous substance.
  3. See jewelweed.

[Latin balsamum, from Greek balsamon, of Semitic origin; see bśm in Semitic roots.]
jew·el·weed   (jōō'əl-wēd')   
n.  Any of several plants of the genus Impatiens having yellowish spurred flowers and seedpods that dehisce into five valves when mature. Also called balsam, touch-me-not.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Balsam

Bal"sam\, n. [L. balsamum the balsam tree or its resin, Gr. ?. See Balm, n.]

1. A resin containing more or less of an essential or volatile oil.

Note: The balsams are aromatic resinous substances, flowing spontaneously or by incision from certain plants. A great variety of substances pass under this name, but the term is now usually restricted to resins which, in addition to a volatile oil, contain benzoic and cinnamic acid. Among the true balsams are the balm of Gilead, and the balsams of copaiba, Peru, and Tolu. There are also many pharmaceutical preparations and resinous substances, possessed of a balsamic smell, to which the name balsam has been given.

2. (Bot.) (a) A species of tree (Abies balsamea). (b) An annual garden plant (Impatiens balsamina) with beautiful flowers; balsamine.

3. Anything that heals, soothes, or restores.

Was not the people's blessing a balsam to thy blood? --Tennyson.

Balsam apple (Bot.), an East Indian plant (Momordica balsamina), of the gourd family, with red or orange-yellow cucumber-shaped fruit of the size of a walnut, used as a vulnerary, and in liniments and poultices.

Balsam fir (Bot.), the American coniferous tree, Abies balsamea, from which the useful Canada balsam is derived.

Balsam of copaiba. See Copaiba.

Balsam of Mecca, balm of Gilead.

Balsam of Peru, a reddish brown, syrupy balsam, obtained from a Central American tree (Myroxylon Pereir[ae] and used as a stomachic and expectorant, and in the treatment of ulcers, etc. It was long supposed to be a product of Peru.

Balsam of Tolu, a reddish or yellowish brown semisolid or solid balsam, obtained from a South American tree (Myroxylon toluiferum). It is highly fragrant, and is used as a stomachic and expectorant.

Balsam tree, any tree from which balsam is obtained, esp. the Abies balsamea.

Canada balsam, Balsam of fir, Canada turpentine, a yellowish, viscid liquid, which, by time and exposure, becomes a transparent solid mass. It is obtained from the balm of Gilead (or balsam) fir (Abies balsamea) by breaking the vesicles upon the trunk and branches. See Balm.

Balsam

Bal"sam\, v. t. To treat or anoint with balsam; to relieve, as with balsam; to render balsamic.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : balsam
Spanish: bálsamo,
German: der Balsam,
Japanese: バルサム
More Translations »

balsam 
1579, "aromatic resin used for healing wounds and soothing pains," from L. balsamum (see balm). There is an isolated O.E. reference from c.1000. As a type of flowering plant of the Impatiens family, it is attested from 1741. Balsamic is from 1605.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Main Entry: bal·sam
Pronunciation: 'bol-s&m
Function: noun
1 a : an aromatic and usually oily and resinous substance flowing from variousplants; especially : any of several resinous substances containing benzoic or cinnamic acid and used especially in medicine b : a preparation containing resinoussubstances and having a balsamic odor
2 : a balsam-yielding tree
3 : BALM 3 —bal·sam·ic /bol-'sam-ik/ adjective
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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balsam   (bôl'səm)  Pronunciation Key 
Any of several aromatic resins that flow from certain plants and that contain considerable amounts of benzoic acid, cinnamic acid, or both, or their esters. Balsams are used in perfumes and medicines.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2002. Published by Houghton Mifflin. All rights reserved.
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