rhatany

(redirected from ratanies)

rhat·a·ny

also rat·a·ny (răt′n-ē)

n. pl. rhat·a·nies also rat·a·nies

1. Any of several hemiparasitic herbs or shrubs of the genus Krameria of the Americas, having bilaterally symmetrical pink or purplish flowers and spiny fruit.

2. The dried root of any of these plants, formerly used as an astringent, in various dental preparations, and as the source of a dye.

[From New Latin rhatania, from American Spanish ratania, of Quechua origin.]

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.

rhatany

ratany

n, pl -nies

1. (Plants) either of two South American leguminous shrubs, Krameria triandra or K. argentea, that have thick fleshy roots

2. (Pharmacology) the dried roots of such shrubs used as an astringent

Also called: krameria

[C19: from New Latin rhatānia, ultimately from Quechua ratánya]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014