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cou·ma·rin

(kmər-ĭn)

A fragrant crystalline compound, C₉H₆O₂, present in tonka beans and produced synthetically for use as a fragrance. Coumarin has been banned as a food additive in the United States because it can be toxic in large amounts.

[French coumarine, from coumarou, tonka bean tree, from Spanish coumarú, from Portuguese cumaru, from Tupí cumarú, commaru.]

couma·ric (-mər-ĭk) adj.

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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