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gourd
gourd , common name for some members of the Cucurbitaceae, a family of plants whose range includes all tropical and subtropical areas and extends into the temperate zones. Almost all members of the family are annual herbs that grow as climbing or prostrate vines with spirally coiled tendrils. The characteristic large and fleshy fruit of many genera is often called a pepo; several genera have dry fruits, some with a single seed. The family is known for its many edible and otherwise useful plants. The name gourd is applied to those whose fruits have hard, durable shells used for ornament and as utensils, e.g., drinking cups, dippers, and bowls. The Old World genus Lagenaria includes the calabash, dipper, and bottle gourds. Luffa cylindrica is the loofah, dishcloth gourd, or vegetable sponge; when the edible fruit—called California okra in the S United States—is bleached dry, the inner fibrous network is used as a filter or a scrubbing sponge. Among the many other gourds are the serpent, or snake, gourd ( Trichosanthes anguina ) of Indomalaysia, whose slender fruit reaches 6 ft (1.8 m) in length. Many of the edible members of the family have been cultivated for so long—often since prehistoric times—that a single species may include several quite different varieties. Cucurbita includes the pumpkin , the vegetable marrow, and the summer squashes (all varieties of C. pepo ); the winter squashes (varieties of C. maxima ); and the crooknecks and the cheese pumpkin (varieties of C. moschata ). Cucumis (see melon ) includes the cucumbers ( C. sativus ) and the gherkins ( C. anguria ); C. melo includes all melons except the watermelon , which, together with the citron, or preserving, melon, is Citrullis vulgaris. Of the few members of the family indigenous to the United States, the colocynth, or bitter-apple ( Citrullis colocynthis ), yields a powerful laxative from the dried pulp, and the wild balsam apple, or prickly cucumber ( Echinocystis lobata ), characteristically explodes when ripe, shooting out its seeds—as does the Mediterranean squirting cucumber ( Ecballium elaterium ). Bryony (two species of Bryonia ), cultivated in Central Europe as a cover vine, has long been valued locally for the medicinal properties of its roots. The African genus Dendrosicyos is a unique member of the family in that it grows as a small, bushy tree. Gourds are classified in the division Magnoliophyta , class Magnoliopsida, order Violales, family Cucurbitaceae.
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"gourd." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "gourd." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-gourd.html "gourd." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-gourd.html |
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gourd
gourd / gôrd/ • n. 1. a fleshy, typically large fruit with a hard skin, some varieties of which are edible. ∎ a container or ornament made from the hollowed and dried skin of this fruit. 2. a climbing or trailing plant that bears this fruit. The gourd family (Cucurbitaceae) also includes the squashes, pumpkins, melons, and cucumbers. PHRASES: out of one's gourd inf. out of one's mind; crazy.DERIVATIVES: gourd·ful / -ˌfoŏl/ n. (pl. -fuls) . |
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"gourd." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "gourd." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-gourd.html "gourd." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-gourd.html |
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gourd
gourd Annual vine and its ornamental, hard-shelled fruit. These range from almost spherical, as in Cucurbita pepo, to irregular or bottle-shaped, as in Lagenaria siceraria. The rind may be smooth or warty. Family Cucurbitaceae.
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"gourd." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "gourd." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-gourd.html "gourd." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-gourd.html |
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gourd
gourd in the Authorized Version, name given to the plant which sheltered Jonah.
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ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "gourd." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "gourd." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-gourd.html ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "gourd." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-gourd.html |
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gourd
gourd XIV. — AN. gurde, OF. gourde, repr. ult. L. cucurbita.
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T. F. HOAD. "gourd." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "gourd." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-gourd.html T. F. HOAD. "gourd." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-gourd.html |
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gourd
gourd See CUCURBITACEAE.
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MICHAEL ALLABY. "gourd." A Dictionary of Plant Sciences. 1998. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. MICHAEL ALLABY. "gourd." A Dictionary of Plant Sciences. 1998. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O7-gourd.html MICHAEL ALLABY. "gourd." A Dictionary of Plant Sciences. 1998. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O7-gourd.html |
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gourd
gourd
•multi-layered
•beard, weird
•greybeard (US graybeard)
•bluebeard • Iliad • Olympiad • myriad
•period
•hamadryad, jeremiad, semi-retired, underwired, undesired, unexpired, uninspired
•coward, Howard, underpowered, unpowered
•froward
•leeward, steward
•gourd, Lourdes, self-assured, uncured, uninsured, unobscured, unsecured
•scabbard, tabard
•halberd • starboard
•unremembered • tribade • cupboard
•unencumbered, unnumbered
•good-natured, ill-natured
•Richard • pilchard • pochard • orchard
•unstructured • uncultured
•standard, sub-standard
•unconsidered • unhindered
•unordered • Stafford • Bradford
•Sandford, Sanford, Stanford
•Hartford, Hertford
•Bedford, Redford
•Telford • Wexford • Chelmsford
•Clifford • Pickford • Guildford
•Linford • Mitford • Hereford
•Longford • Oxford • Watford
•Crawford • Salford • Rutherford
•haggard, laggard
•niggard • unsugared • sluggard
•unmeasured • uninjured • tankard
•becard • bewhiskered • unconquered
•drunkard
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"gourd." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "gourd." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-gourd.html "gourd." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-gourd.html |
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