croton Hear it!

croton definition

cro·ton (krōt'n)

noun

  1. any of a large, mostly tropical genus (Croton) of shrubs, trees, and herbs of the spurge family: certain species yield croton oil and cascarilla, formerly used in medicine, and others are poisonous range weeds in the SW U.S.
  2. any of a genus (Codiaeum) of shrubs of the spurge family, grown for their ornamental, leathery leaves

Etymology: ModL < Gr krotōn, a tick, castor-oil plant or (in pl.) its ticklike seeds

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Comments
Improve this definition.
Do you have more to add? Share your linguistic knowledge or observation.
/Register to save your comments.