/ˈs(j)uːmæk/, /ˈʃuː-/, /ˈsuːˌmæk/
OriginThe noun is derived from Middle English sumac, asimac, simak, sumak, symak (“portions of the shrub Rhus coriaria, chiefly used for medicinal purposes”), from Anglo-Norman sumak, symak, and Old French sumac, or directly from its etymon Medieval Latin sumach, sumac, from Arabic سُمَّاق (summāq), from Classical Syriac ܣܘܡܩܐ (summāqā, “red; sumac”). The English word is cognate with Italian sommaco, sommacco, Occitan simac, Portuguese sumagre, Spanish zumaque.
The verb is derived from the noun.
- uncountable, usuallyAny of various shrubs or small trees of the genus Rhus and certain other genera in Anacardiaceae.
“The Rhamnus of Maderaspatan, and the Trifoliate Sumachs from the Coaſt of Africa, are altogether new.”
“Shumack, Chapacour, and the famous Snake-root, ſo much admir'd in England for being a Cordial, and an Antidote in all Peſtilential Diſeases.”
“In the mean Time, gargle your Throat, and waſh all your Sores, and Ulcers with the ſame warm Liquor, which ought to be made freſh every 2 Days. Beſides all this, you muſt chew the Sumac Root very ofte”
- uncountable, usuallyparticularly, one of species Rhus coriaria (tanner's sumac)
- uncountable, usuallyDried and chopped-up leaves and stems of a plant of the genus Rhus, particularly tanner's sumac (see sense 1), used for dyeing and tanning leather or for medicinal purposes.
- uncountable, usuallyA sour spice popular in the Eastern Mediterranean, made from the berries of tanner's sumac.
“The spices used in this bread are zaatar and sumack. [...] Sumack is a spice derived from the berries of a bush that grows wild in all Mediterranean areas. The berries are dried and crushed to form a ”
“Sumac is a berry from a bush which grows mostly in southern Italy and the Middle East. The berries are dried and crushed to make ground sumac, used in making many foods such as Yaprakh, Kinirmasee (fr”
- transitiveTo apply a preparation of sumac to (an object), for example, to a piece of leather to tan it.
“After this operation, the goods muſt be winched and well planked, or otherwiſe cleaned; they are then, according to the quality of them, to be ſumached, and then ſnitchelled off, and waſhed.”
“Then lot 1 will be shumacked first time; that is, passed through a decoction of shumac, then through copperas, and then washed off, and if the decoction of shumac is kept up strong, after being all of”
“A great variety of Blue Drabs can be dyed by first Sumaching the cotton, and then in another tub add a little Nitrate of Iron or Copperas liquor, and give a few turns.”
Formssumacs(plural) · shumac(alternative) · shumack(alternative) · sumach(alternative) · sumack(alternative) · sumacs(present, singular, third-person) · sumacing(participle, present) · sumacking(participle, present) · sumaced(participle, past) · sumaced(past) · sumacked(participle, past) · sumacked(past)