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Of, pertaining to, or resembling, a family of plants of which the cucumber, melon, and gourd are common examples.

The common name of several cucurbitaceous plants of the genus Bryonia. The root of B. alba (rough or white bryony) and of B. dioica is a strong, irritating cathartic. Black bryony, a plant (Tamus communis) so named from its dark glossy leaves and black root; black bindweed.

A genus of cucurbitaceous plants consisting of the single species Ecballium agreste (or Elaterium), the squirting cucumber. Its fruit, when ripe, bursts and violently ejects its seeds, together with a mucilaginous juice, from which elaterium, a powerful cathartic medicine, is prepared.

The spongelike fibers of the fruit of a cucurbitaceous plant (Luffa Ægyptiaca); called also vegetable sponge.

A small genus of tropical cucurbitaceous plants having white flowers, the staminate borne in racemes, and large fruits with a dry fibrous pericarp. The fruit of several species and the species themselves, esp. L. Ægyptiaca, are called dishcloth gourds.

The juicy fruit of certain cucurbitaceous plants, as the muskmelon, watermelon, and citron melon; also, the plant that produces the fruit.

a scientific toy. -- Serpent cucumber (Bot.), the long, slender, serpentine fruit of the cucurbitaceous plant Trichosanthes colubrina; also, the plant itself. -- Serpent eage (Zoöl.), any one of several species of raptorial birds of the genera Circaëtus and Spilornis, which prey on serpents. They inhabit Africa, Sout…

for drying anything wet, as the person after a bath. Towel gourd (Bot.), the fruit of the cucurbitaceous plant Luffa Ægyptiaca; also, the plant itself. The fruit is very fibrous, and, when separated from its rind and seeds, is used as a sponge or towel. Called also Egyptian bath sponge, and dishcloth.…

eper; as, the hop vine; the bean vine; the vines of melons, squashes, pumpkins, and other cucurbitaceous plants. There shall be no grapes on the vine. Jer. viii. 13. And one went out into the field to gather herbs, and found a wild vine, and gathered thereof wild gourds. 2 Kings iv. 89. Vine apple (Bot.), a small kind…

The very large ovoid or roundish fruit of a cucurbitaceous plant (Citrullus vulgaris) of many varieties; also, the plant itself. The fruit sometimes weighs many pounds; its pulp is usually pink in color, and full of a sweet watery juice. It is a native of tropical Africa, but is now cultivated in many countries. See Il…