cinnamon
UK /ˈsɪnəmən/ · US /ˈsɪəmən/ noun, adjective, proper noun
Forms cinnamons
- noun (countable) A small evergreen tree native to Sri Lanka and southern India, Cinnamomum verum or Cinnamomum zeylanicum, belonging to the family Lauraceae.
- noun Several related trees, notably the Indonesian cinnamon (Cinnamomum burmanni) and Chinese cinnamon or cassia (Cinnamomum aromaticum or Cinnamomum cassia).
- noun (chiefly uncountable) A spice from the dried aromatic bark of the cinnamon tree, either rolled into strips or ground into a powder. The word is commonly used as a trade name for spices made of any of the species above. “cinnamon toast”
- noun true cinnamon, the product made of Cinnamomum verum
- noun (countable) A warm yellowish-brown color, the color of cinnamon. “They instructed the upholsterer to do the sofa in cinnamon and the ottoman in umber.”
- adjective Containing cinnamon, or having a cinnamon taste.
- adjective Of a yellowish-brown color.
- proper noun A surname.
- proper noun A female given name.
Synonyms
cinnamon bark Ceylon cinnamon Ceylon cinnamon tree Cinnamomum zeylanicum
Etymology
From Middle English synamome, from Old French cinnamone, from Latin cinnamon, cinnamomum, from Ancient Greek κιννάμωμον (kinnámōmon), later κίνναμον (kínnamon), according to Herodotus from Phoenician [Term?], cognate with Hebrew קִנָּמוֹן (qinnāmōn).
Webster’s 1913
Etymology [Heb. qinnamon; cf. Gr. cinnamomum, cinnamon. The Heb. word itself seems to have been borrowed from some other language; cf. Malay kaju manis sweet wood.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “cinnamon”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details