Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. Any of various shrubs or small trees of the genus Rhus, having compound leaves, clusters of small greenish flowers, and usually red, hairy fruit. Some species, such as the poison ivy and poison oak, cause an acute itching rash on contact.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. One of numerous shrubs or small trees of the genus Rhus. See def. 2, and phrases below.
- n. A product of the dried and ground leaves of certain shrubs or trees of the genus Rhus or of other genera, much used for tanning light-colored leathers and to some extent for dyeing. The leading source of this product is the tanners' or Sicilian sumac, Rhus Coriaria, of southern Europe, cultivated in Sicily and also in Tuscany. The Venetian sumac, smoke-tree, or wig-tree, R. Cotinus, is grown in Tyrol for the same purpose. (See
smoke-tree and scotino.) In Spain various species supply a similar substance, and in Algeria the leaves of R. pentaphylla, five-leaved or Tezera sumac, are applied to the manufacture of morocco. In France a tree of another genus, Coriaria myrtifolia, myrtle-leaved sumac, furnishes a similar product. (SeeCoriaria .) In the United States, particularly in Virginia, the leaves of several wild sumacs are now gathered as tan-stock—namely, of the dwarf, the smooth, the stag-horn, and perhaps the Canadian sumac. These contain more tannin than the European, but, at least with careless gathering, they make an inferior leather. - In leather manufacturing, to treat with sumac.
Wiktionary
- n. Any of various shrubs or small trees of the genus Rhus including the poison ivy and poison oak.
- n. A sour spice popular in the Eastern Mediterranean made from the berries of the plant.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. (Bot.) Any plant of the genus Rhus, shrubs or small trees with usually compound leaves and clusters of small flowers. Some of the species are used in tanning, some in dyeing, and some in medicine. One, the Japanese Rhus vernicifera, yields the celebrated Japan varnish, or lacquer.
- n. The powdered leaves, peduncles, and young branches of certain species of the sumac plant, used in tanning and dyeing.
WordNet 3.0
- n. wood of a sumac
- n. a shrub or tree of the genus Rhus (usually limited to the non-poisonous members of the genus)
Etymologies
- Old French sumac, from Medieval Latin sumach, from Arabic سماق (summāq), from Classical Syriac ܣܘܡܩ (summāq, "red, sumac"). (Wiktionary)
- Middle English, preparation made from sumac, from Old French (possibly via Medieval Latin sumach), from Arabic summāq, sumac tree, from Aramaic, dark red, from səmaq, to be red; see smq in Semitic roots. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“The offending material in all species of poison ivy, poison oak and poison sumac is an oily resin known as urushiol.”
“The irritant in all species of poison ivy, poison oak and poison sumac is an oily resin known as toxicodendrol.”
“In Anchorage, sumac is available at Sagaya and City Market.”
“Jenn, I agree completely - sumac is a wonderful spice!”
Recipe: Palestinian Spinach Pies (Παλαιστινιακή Σπανακόπιτα)
“Both dishes look lovely, and the sumac is a very nice touch.”
“The ingredient that makes it special is ground sumac, which is a berry from the Mediterranean Sumac tree.”
“The sumac is the red fruit of a wild bush, but is widely available in the spice section of many stores.”
“The rice was flavoured with a small, tangy red berry called sumac and the bitter, refreshing coffee that followed was fragrant with cardamom.”
“On the tip-top antler of the old stag sumac, he perched and strained until his jetty whiskers appeared stubby.”
“He was compelled almost hourly to wage battles for his location, for there was something fine about the old stag sumac that attracted homestead seekers.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘sumac’.
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7thGradeWords
horde, doggedly, retina, frail, jovial, insidious, injudicious, brazen, tentative, hortle, adaver, benign and 91 more...
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Of Arabic Origin
Arabic loanwords in English are words acquired directly from Arabic or else indirectly by passing from Arabic into other languages and then into English. Most entered one or more of the Romance lan...
admiral, adobe, albatross, alchemy, alcohol, alcove, alembic, alfalfa, algebra, algorism, algorithm, alidade and 181 more...
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Ends with C but not with "-ic"
bloc, roc, arc, orc, disc, sac, xebec, havoc, bivouac, sumac, maniac, insomniac and 418 more...
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spice
zest, clowe-gilofre, bespice, piquance, star anise, epice, eugenia aromaticum, macis, tanginess, pimenta dioica, fenugreek, Geri Halliwell and 34 more...
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Hummus
Ingredients, variations, folklore, things (and people) to eat it with, etc.
hommus, tahini, lemon juice, sweet paprika, hummus, celery stick, mushroom, bagel, ruzuzu, salt, olive, garlic and 41 more...
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Spices: How Exotic!
That extra something that makes the dish pop.
white pepper, wasabi, vanilla, turmeric, tonka bean, tamarind, sumac, star anise, St. John's bread, Sichuan pepper, sesame seed, sassafras and 70 more...
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Schwa-Free
Words of more than one syllable that include no schwas in their pronunciation.
(Note for pedants: some of these words have more than one pronunciation. As long as just one of the possi...decoy, ballet, survey, sashay, argon, lilac, sumac, café, princess, dildo, wordy, flighty and 30 more...
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In The Colorhouse
A colorhouse - a manufactory of colors for tints, dyes, pigments, paints, glazes, &c. Terms associated with the science and history of colormaking.
All sorts of things went into color...colorhouse, Turkey red, dyebath, woad, ocher, lead white, mordant, Naples yellow, zaffer, kiln, vat, pot and 298 more...
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Words Covered in Faery Dust (S)
words that evoke magic, mystery, mayhem, magnificence or anything else that glimmers in the grass
sabian symbols, saffron, sagacious, sage, salamander, sally lunn, salmon, salsify, salt water taffy, samhain, sand dollar, sandalwood and 270 more...
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wickedwitch's list
lll
alit, plinth, eclat, diaphanous, portico, nival, daedal, apse, fossa, pellet, avail, midge and 143 more...
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Trees!
mahogany, sequoia, balsa, sandalwood, tamarind, balsam, eucalyptus, birch, willow, buttonwood, evergreen, loblolly and 501 more...
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Hedgepiglet
Words for things both tangible and nonanthropic
rorqual, vellus, wrasse, rainbow bee-eater, tinkershire, lemonquat, boomslang, tufted vetch, cubeb, nipplefruit, madapple, wad and 447 more...
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Favorite Five-Letter Words
Just what it sounds like. My favorites. Five letters.
ennui, barfy, samba, schwa, beefy, chunk, queef, spasm, skulk, bowel, elbow, fruit and 235 more...
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Chromonyms
These chromonyms are defined as colors in at least one dictionary (mostly MW3). (Actually there's one fake, for reasons I'll explain someday.) They are all one-word nouns such as "kelly", which can...
absinthe, acacia, acorn, alabaster, alesan, almond, aloma, amaranth, amber, amethyst, anemone, anil and 821 more...
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Exotic Tastes
Interesting words related to food, ingredients, dishes, cookery, cuisines and so on. Exotic in this case is entirely subjective, with funkelberries on top.
tatty, neep, flummery, babaganoush, tahini, samphire, loblolly, scrumpy, fressen, luwak, duxelle, edamame and 213 more...
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Herbs and Spices
With the odd seasoning that isn't strictly an herb or spice.
wasabi, vanilla, turmeric, thyme, tarragon, sumac, star anise, shallot, sesame, savory, salt, sage and 62 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for sumac.

bilby
The sumac is a gypsy queen,
Who flaunts in crimson dressed,
And wild along the roadside runs,
Red blossoms in her breast.
- Alfred Tennyson, 'Autumn Fancies'. Nov 12, 2008
fbharjo from semitic root to become red Jan 22, 2008