ephedra
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Related to ephedras: Ma-huang
e·phed·ra
(ĭ-fĕd′rə, ĕf′ĭ-drə)n.
1. Any of various usually shrubby gymnosperms of the genus Ephedra, having jointed green stems and small scalelike leaves, some species of which are used as a source of ephedrine.
2. A drug containing ephedrine derived from one of these plants, used in traditional Chinese medicine as a stimulant and decongestant and sold in the United States primarily as a dietary supplement for weight loss before it was banned because of toxic side effects in 2004. Also called ma huang.
[Latin ephedra, horsetail, from Greek ephedrā, from feminine of ephedros, sitting upon : ep-, epi-, epi- + hedrā, seat; see sed- in Indo-European roots.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
ephedra
(ɪˈfɛdrə)n
(Plants) any gymnosperm shrub of the genus Ephedra, of warm regions of America and Eurasia: the source of ephedrine: family Ephedraceae, phylum Gnetophyta
[C18: New Latin, from Latin, from Greek ephedros a sitting upon, from epi- + hedra seat]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
e•phed•ra
(ɪˈfɛd rə, ˈɛf ɪ drə)n., pl. -ras.
any desert gymnosperm plant of the genus Ephedra, of the family Gnetaceae, with leaves reduced to scales at stem joints.
[1890–1900; < New Latin (Linnaeus) < Greek ephédra the horsetail plant, literally, sitting (upon a place)]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
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| Noun | 1. | ephedra - jointed and nearly leafless desert shrub having reduced scalelike leaves and reddish fleshy seeds genus Ephedra - type and sole genus of Ephedraceae: tropical and subtropical evergreen shrubby or creeping plants native to dry and inhospitable regions Ephedra sinica, mahuang - Chinese ephedra yielding ephedrine |
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ephedra
n (bot) efedraEnglish-Spanish/Spanish-English Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.