Lexic.us

Definition of Jalap

1. n. The tubers of the Mexican plant Ipomœa purga (or Exogonium purga), a climber much like the morning-glory. The abstract, extract, and powder, prepared from the tubers, are well known purgative medicines. Other species of Ipomœa yield several inferior kinds of jalap, as the I. Orizabensis, and I. tuberosa.

Definition of Jalap

1. Noun. A cathartic drug consisting of the tuberous roots of ''Ipomoea purga'', a convolvulaceous plant found in Mexico. ¹

¹ Source: wiktionary.com

Definition of Jalap

1. a Mexican plant [n -S] : JALAPIC [adj]

Medical Definition of Jalap

1. The tubers of the Mexican plant Ipomoea purga (or Exogonium purga), a climber much like the morning-glory. The abstract, extract, and powder, prepared from the tubers, are well known purgative medicines. Other species of Ipomoea yield several inferior kinds of jalap, as the I. Orizabensis, and I. Tuberosa. False jalap, the root of Mirabilis Jalapa, four-o'clock, or marvel of Peru. Origin: F, fr. Sp. Jalapa; so called from Jalapa, a town in Mexico, whence it was first obtained. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998)

Lexicographical Neighbors of Jalap

Other Resources: