anil
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an·il
(ăn′ĭl)n.
An indigo plant or the blue dye obtained from it.
[French, from Portuguese, from Arabic an-nīl, the indigo plant : al-, the + Persian nīl (from Sanskrit nīlī, from nīla-, dark blue).]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
anil
(ˈænɪl)n
(Plants) a leguminous West Indian shrub, Indigofera suffruticosa: a source of indigo. Also called: indigo
[C16: from Portuguese, from Arabic an-nīl, the indigo, from Sanskrit nīla dark blue]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
an•il
(ˈæn l)n.
1. a West Indian shrub, Indigoferasuffruticosa, of the legume family, having clusters of small, reddish yellow flowers and yielding indigo.
2. indigo; deep blue.
[1575–85; < Portuguese < Arabic an-nīl=al the + nīl indigo < Skt nīlī indigo (nīl(a) dark blue + -ī feminine n. suffix)]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
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| Noun | 1. |  anil - a blue dye obtained from plants or made synthetically |
| 2. |  anil - shrub of West Indies and South America that is a source of indigo dyeindigo plant, Indigofera tinctoria, indigo - deciduous subshrub of southeastern Asia having pinnate leaves and clusters of red or purple flowers; a source of indigo dye |
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