![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
prettygoodwordcucurbit (kyoo-KUR-bit) - n., any member of the family Cucurbitaceae of gourds; (Chem.) a vessel or flask for forming part of an alembic, formerly used for distillation.
The curcubits include all squashes, pumpkins, cucumbers, gourds, melons, and calabashes -- not to mention loofahs.
.jpg/480px-Cucurbits_(Cucurbitaceae).jpg)
Thanks, WikiMedia!
The alembic part, which is the flask containing the liquid to be heated and distilled, is named after its resemblance to a gourd -- and the word was sometimes used for any sort of bulbous flask. The word dates back to Middle English (14th century) from Middle French cucurbite, from Latin cucurbita, gourd (which also gave us courgette, a British name for zucchini, and gourd), of uncertain origin but possibly related to cucumis, cucumber, or corbis, basket, or corbīta, freight vessel.
---L.
The curcubits include all squashes, pumpkins, cucumbers, gourds, melons, and calabashes -- not to mention loofahs.
Thanks, WikiMedia!
The alembic part, which is the flask containing the liquid to be heated and distilled, is named after its resemblance to a gourd -- and the word was sometimes used for any sort of bulbous flask. The word dates back to Middle English (14th century) from Middle French cucurbite, from Latin cucurbita, gourd (which also gave us courgette, a British name for zucchini, and gourd), of uncertain origin but possibly related to cucumis, cucumber, or corbis, basket, or corbīta, freight vessel.
---L.
.jpg){kind=link}