n. A resinous substance collected from the buds of certain trees by bees and used as a cement or sealant in the construction of their hives. [Latin, from Greek, suburb, bee glue (from the fact that it was originally the name of a structure around the opening into the hive) : pro-, before; see PRO-2 + polis, city; see pelə-3 in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.