Jalaps

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A type of medicinal plant root used as a laxative ; a purgative substance derived from tuberous roots ; a traditional remedy that induces bowel movements
2. Tubers from certain plants employed to treat constipation ; natural compounds extracted to stimulate defecation ; herbal purgative agents found in botanical medicine
3. Plant roots utilized for their strong cathartic effects ; substances obtained from roots that promote intestinal clearing ; traditional natural laxatives derived from specific herbaceous plants

Etymology: "Jalaps" is simply the plural of "jalap," the name for the dried tuberous roots of a climbing plant, and its story begins with a place. The name comes from Xalapa, a city in the Mexican state of Veracruz, where the plant grew and where the drug was traded. The city's name, in turn, comes from Nahuatl, the language of the Aztecs, though the drug's name is the one that travelled furthest. Those roots were valued as a purgative, a substance that stimulates the bowels, and the name spread through European pharmacy along with the plant. The word is a shortening of "jalapeño," the familiar Spanish term for the chili pepper, which also takes its name from Xalapa. The two words share a Mexican origin, though the pepper and the root have no botanical relationship.

Synonyms: jalap root, laxative, medicinal root