sesame

[ ses-uh-mee ]

noun
  1. a tropical, herbaceous plant, Sesamum indicum, whose small oval seeds are edible and yield an oil.

  2. the seeds themselves, used to add flavor to bread, crackers, etc.

Origin of sesame

1
1400–50; <Greek sēsámē sesame plant ≪ Akkadian shamashshammū, derived from shaman shammī plant oil; replacing sesam,late Middle English sysane<Latin sēsamum<Greek sḗsamon sesame seed
  • Also called benne (for defs. 1, 2).

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British Dictionary definitions for sesame

sesame

/ (ˈsɛsəmɪ) /


noun
  1. a tropical herbaceous plant, Sesamum indicum, of the East Indies, cultivated, esp in India, for its small oval seeds: family Pedaliaceae

  2. the seeds of this plant, used in flavouring bread and yielding an edible oil (benne oil or gingili)

Origin of sesame

1
C15: from Latin sēsamum, from Greek sēsamon, sēsamē, of Semitic origin; related to Arabic simsim
  • Also called: benne, gingili, til

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