1.
[syn: allspice, allspice tree, pimento tree, Pimenta dioica]
2. deciduous shrubs having aromatic bark; eastern China; southwestern and eastern United States;
3. ground dried berrylike fruit of a West Indian allspice tree; suggesting combined flavors of cinnamon and nutmeg and cloves;
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Allspice \All"spice`\, n.
The berry of the pimento (Eugenia pimenta), a tree of the
West Indies; a spice of a mildly pungent taste, and agreeably
aromatic; Jamaica pepper; pimento. It has been supposed to
combine the flavor of cinnamon, nutmegs, and cloves; and
hence the name. The name is also given to other aromatic
shrubs; as, the Carolina allspice (Calycanthus floridus);
wild allspice (Lindera benzoin), called also spicebush,
spicewood, and feverbush.
[1913 Webster]
WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):
allspice
n 1: aromatic West Indian tree that produces allspice berries
[syn: allspice, allspice tree, pimento tree, Pimenta
dioica]
2: deciduous shrubs having aromatic bark; eastern China;
southwestern and eastern United States
3: ground dried berrylike fruit of a West Indian allspice tree;
suggesting combined flavors of cinnamon and nutmeg and cloves