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gamboge

 - 4 dictionary results

gam⋅boge

[gam-bohj, -boozh]
–noun
1. Also, cambogia. a gum resin from various Asian trees of the genus Garcinia, esp. G. hanburyi, used as a yellow pigment and as a cathartic.
2. yellow or yellow-orange.

Origin:
1625–35; < NL gambog- (s. of gambogium), var. of cambog-, after Cambodia


gam⋅bo⋅gi⋅an, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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gam·boge   (gām-bōj', -bōōzh')   
n.  
  1. A brownish or orange resin obtained from several trees of the genus Garcinia of south-central Asia and yielding a golden-yellow pigment.

  2. A strong reddish yellow.


[New Latin cambugium, gambogium, after Cambodia.]
gam·boge' adj.
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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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: gam·boge
Pronunciation: gam-'bOj, -'büzh
Function: noun
: an orange to brown gum resin from southeast Asian trees (genusGarcinia of the family Guttiferae) that is used as a yellow pigment and cathartic called also cambogia
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Encyclopedia

gamboge

hard, brittle gum resin that is obtained from various Southeast Asian trees of the genus Garcinia and is used as a colour vehicle and in medicine. Gamboge is orange to brown in colour and when powdered turns bright yellow. Artists use it as a pigment and as a colouring matter for varnishes. In medicine and veterinary medicine it is a drastic cathartic. On the skin it has a severe irritant effect. Gamboge was probably brought into Europe from the East at the close of the 16th century.

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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