Hypertext Webster Gateway: "sarsaparilla"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Sarsaparilla \Sar`sa*pa*ril"la\, n. [Sp. zarzaparrilla; zarza a
bramble (perhaps fr. Bisc. zartzia) + parra a vine, or
Parillo, a physician said to have discovered it.] (Bot.)
(a) Any plant of several tropical American species of
{Smilax}.
(b) The bitter mucilaginous roots of such plants, used in
medicine and in sirups for soda, etc.
Note: The name is also applied to many other plants and their
roots, especially to the {Aralia nudicaulis}, the wild
sarsaparilla of the United States.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
sarsaparilla
n 1: any of various prickly climbing plants of the tropical
American genus Smilax having aromatic roots and
heart-shaped leaves
2: carbonated drink flavored with an extract from sarsaparilla
root or with birch oil and sassafras
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