Croton

[krәutәn]

Definition

(noun.) tropical Asiatic shrub; source of croton oil.

(noun.) grown in many varieties for their brightly colored foliage; widely cultivated as a houseplant.

Editor: Mary--From WordNet

Definition

(n.) A genus of euphorbiaceous plants belonging to tropical countries.

Edited by Jonathan

Definition

n. a genus of tropical plants producing a brownish-yellow oil having a hot biting taste.—ns. Crō′tonate a salt formed by the union of crotonic acid with a base; Crō′ton-oil a powerful purgative oil expressed from the seeds of the Croton tiglium also used externally.—Croton′ic acid an acid obtained from croton-oil.

Editor: Miriam