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1. WordNet® 3.0 (2006)
Aralia nudicaulis
    n 1: common perennial herb having aromatic roots used as a
         substitute for sarsaparilla; central and eastern North
         America [syn: wild sarsaparilla, false sarsaparilla,
         wild sarsparilla, Aralia nudicaulis]

2. The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
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.
       [1913 Webster]

   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.
         [1913 Webster]

3. The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Wild \Wild\, a. [Compar. Wilder; superl. Wildest.] [OE.
   wilde, AS. wilde; akin to OFries. wilde, D. wild, OS. & OHG.
   wildi, G. wild, Sw. & Dan. vild, Icel. villr wild,
   bewildered, astray, Goth. wilpeis wild, and G. & OHG. wild
   game, deer; of uncertain origin.]
   [1913 Webster]
   1. Living in a state of nature; inhabiting natural haunts, as
      the forest or open field; not familiar with, or not easily
      approached by, man; not tamed or domesticated; as, a wild
      boar; a wild ox; a wild cat.
      [1913 Webster]

            Winter's not gone yet, if the wild geese fly that
            way.                                  --Shak.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. Growing or produced without culture; growing or prepared
      without the aid and care of man; native; not cultivated;
      brought forth by unassisted nature or by animals not
      domesticated; as, wild parsnip, wild camomile, wild
      strawberry, wild honey.
      [1913 Webster]

            The woods and desert caves,
            With wild thyme and gadding vine o'ergrown.
                                                  --Milton.
      [1913 Webster]

   3. Desert; not inhabited or cultivated; as, wild land. "To
      trace the forests wild." --Shak.
      [1913 Webster]

   4. Savage; uncivilized; not refined by culture; ferocious;
      rude; as, wild natives of Africa or America.
      [1913 Webster]

   5. Not submitted to restraint, training, or regulation;
      turbulent; tempestuous; violent; ungoverned; licentious;
      inordinate; disorderly; irregular; fanciful; imaginary;
      visionary; crazy. "Valor grown wild by pride." --Prior. "A
      wild, speculative project." --Swift.
      [1913 Webster]

            What are these
            So withered and so wild in their attire ? --Shak.
      [1913 Webster]

            With mountains, as with weapons, armed; which makes
            Wild work in heaven.                  --Milton.
      [1913 Webster]

            The wild winds howl.                  --Addison.
      [1913 Webster]

            Search then the ruling passion, there, alone
            The wild are constant, and the cunning known.
                                                  --Pope.
      [1913 Webster]

   6. Exposed to the wind and sea; unsheltered; as, a wild
      roadstead.
      [1913 Webster]

   7. Indicating strong emotion, intense excitement, or
      ?ewilderment; as, a wild look.
      [1913 Webster]

   8. (Naut.) Hard to steer; -- said of a vessel.
      [1913 Webster]

   Note: Many plants are named by prefixing wild to the names of
         other better known or cultivated plants to which they a
         bear a real or fancied resemblance; as, wild allspice,
         wild pink, etc. See the Phrases below.
         [1913 Webster]
         [1913 Webster]

   To run wild, to go unrestrained or untamed; to live or
      untamed; to live or grow without culture or training.

   To sow one's wild oats. See under Oat.
      [1913 Webster]

   Wild allspice. (Bot.), spicewood.

   Wild balsam apple (Bot.), an American climbing
      cucurbitaceous plant (Echinocystis lobata).

   Wild basil (Bot.), a fragrant labiate herb (Calamintha
      Clinopodium) common in Europe and America.

   Wild bean (Bot.), a name of several leguminous plants,
      mostly species of Phaseolus and Apios.

   Wild bee (Zool.), any one of numerous species of
      undomesticated social bees, especially the domestic bee
      when it has escaped from domestication and built its nest
      in a hollow tree or among rocks.

   Wild bergamot. (Bot.) See under Bergamot.

   Wild boar (Zool.), the European wild hog (Sus scrofa),
      from which the common domesticated swine is descended.

   Wild brier (Bot.), any uncultivated species of brier. See
      Brier.

   Wild bugloss (Bot.), an annual rough-leaved plant
      (Lycopsis arvensis) with small blue flowers.

   Wild camomile (Bot.), one or more plants of the composite
      genus Matricaria, much resembling camomile.

   Wild cat. (Zool.)
      (a) A European carnivore (Felis catus) somewhat
          resembling the domestic cat, but larger stronger, and
          having a short tail. It is destructive to the smaller
          domestic animals, such as lambs, kids, poultry, and
          the like.
      (b) The common American lynx, or bay lynx.
      (c) (Naut.) A wheel which can be adjusted so as to revolve
          either with, or on, the shaft of a capstan. --Luce.

   Wild celery. (Bot.) See Tape grass, under Tape.

   Wild cherry. (Bot.)
      (a) Any uncultivated tree which bears cherries. The wild
          red cherry is Prunus Pennsylvanica. The wild black
          cherry is Prunus serotina, the wood of which is much
          used for cabinetwork, being of a light red color and a
          compact texture.
      (b) The fruit of various species of Prunus.

   Wild cinnamon. See the Note under Canella.

   Wild comfrey (Bot.), an American plant (Cynoglossum
      Virginicum) of the Borage family. It has large bristly
      leaves and small blue flowers.

   Wild cumin (Bot.), an annual umbelliferous plant
      (Lag[oe]cia cuminoides) native in the countries about
      the Mediterranean.

   Wild drake (Zool.) the mallard.

   Wild elder (Bot.), an American plant (Aralia hispida) of
      the Ginseng family.

   Wild fowl (Zool.) any wild bird, especially any of those
      considered as game birds.

   Wild goose (Zool.), any one of several species of
      undomesticated geese, especially the Canada goose (Branta
      Canadensis), the European bean goose, and the graylag.
      See Graylag, and Bean goose, under Bean.

   Wild goose chase, the pursuit of something unattainable, or
      of something as unlikely to be caught as the wild goose.
      --Shak.

   Wild honey, honey made by wild bees, and deposited in
      trees, rocks, the like.

   Wild hyacinth. (Bot.) See Hyacinth, 1
      (b) .

   Wild Irishman (Bot.), a thorny bush (Discaria Toumatou)
      of the Buckthorn family, found in New Zealand, where the
      natives use the spines in tattooing.

   Wild land.
      (a) Land not cultivated, or in a state that renders it
          unfit for cultivation.
      (b) Land which is not settled and cultivated.

   Wild licorice. (Bot.) See under Licorice.

   Wild mammee (Bot.), the oblong, yellowish, acid fruit of a
      tropical American tree (Rheedia lateriflora); -- so
      called in the West Indies.

   Wild marjoram (Bot.), a labiate plant (Origanum vulgare)
      much like the sweet marjoram, but less aromatic.

   Wild oat. (Bot.)
      (a) A tall, oatlike kind of soft grass (Arrhenatherum
          avenaceum).
      (b) See Wild oats, under Oat.

   Wild pieplant (Bot.), a species of dock (Rumex
      hymenosepalus) found from Texas to California. Its acid,
      juicy stems are used as a substitute for the garden
      rhubarb.

   Wild pigeon. (Zool.)
      (a) The rock dove.
      (b) The passenger pigeon.

   Wild pink (Bot.), an American plant (Silene
      Pennsylvanica) with pale, pinkish flowers; a kind of
      catchfly.

   Wild plantain (Bot.), an arborescent endogenous herb
      (Heliconia Bihai), much resembling the banana. Its
      leaves and leaf sheaths are much used in the West Indies
      as coverings for packages of merchandise.

   Wild plum. (Bot.)
      (a) Any kind of plum growing without cultivation.
      (b) The South African prune. See under Prune.

   Wild rice. (Bot.) See Indian rice, under Rice.

   Wild rosemary (Bot.), the evergreen shrub Andromeda
      polifolia. See Marsh rosemary, under Rosemary.

   Wild sage. (Bot.) See Sagebrush.

   Wild sarsaparilla (Bot.), a species of ginseng (Aralia
      nudicaulis) bearing a single long-stalked leaf.

   Wild sensitive plant (Bot.), either one of two annual
      leguminous herbs (Cassia Chamaecrista, and Cassia
      nictitans), in both of which the leaflets close quickly
      when the plant is disturbed.

   Wild service.(Bot.) See Sorb.

   Wild Spaniard (Bot.), any one of several umbelliferous
      plants of the genus Aciphylla, natives of New Zealand.
      The leaves bear numerous bayonetlike spines, and the
      plants form an impenetrable thicket.

   Wild turkey. (Zool.) See 2d Turkey.
      [1913 Webster]

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