Crossword Dictionary

What's The Definition Of Bergamot?

\Ber"ga*mot\ (b[~e]r"g[.a]*m[o^]t), n. [F. bergamote, fr. It. bergamotta; prob. a corruption of Turk. beg arm[=u]di a lord's pear.] 1. (Bot.) (a) A tree of the Orange family ({Citrus bergamia}), having a roundish or pear-shaped fruit, from the rind of which an essential oil of delicious odor is extracted, much prized as a perfume. Also, the fruit. (b) A variety of mint ({Mentha aquatica, var. glabrata}). 2. The essence or perfume made from the fruit. 3. A variety of pear. --Johnson. 4. A variety of snuff perfumed with bergamot. The better hand . . . gives the nose its bergamot. --Cowper. 5. A coarse tapestry, manufactured from flock of cotton or hemp, mixed with ox's or goat's hair; -- said to have been invented at Bergamo, Italy. Encyc. Brit. {Wild bergamot} (Bot.), an American herb of the Mint family ({Monarda fistulosa}).